Unity
by SMR723
Summary: COMPLETED. SG1 discovers an alien in a deserted palace that once belonged to Ra. The alien may hold the key to a missing piece of Daniel's past, but he is unprepared for the answers he finds. Sequel to Faces.
1. Default Chapter

AUTHOR's NOTE: This story is set two years after the events of this author's story "Faces" which is also available on this site. Since that would place it in season 9 (which had not been written at the time this story was originally posted), it obviously becomes an alternate reality story. The story was originally rated M due to an implied non-consensual sexual encounter involving a main character but has been downgraded to T based on input I've received.

Many thanks, as always, to my wonderful betas, Matt and Cathy, for their continuing feedback, patience and thoughtful critiques. None of what I write would be possible without their inspiration and support. Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated and gratefully accepted.

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_**STARGATE: SG-1**_  
_**Unity**_

_**Chapter 1**_

Dr. Daniel Jackson staggered and tried to keep from falling as the momentum of his exit from the collapsing wormhole continued to force his body forward while his feet struggled to maintain their position at the top of the short flight of steps leading from the stargate platform to the dimly lit chamber below. The wormhole finally closed behind him, leaving only the 22 foot tall stone ring with its series of alien symbols that could send a traveler who knew its secrets across the galaxy in a matter of seconds.

Jackson quickly scanned the room to see how the rest of SG-1 had fared. The team leader, Lt. Col. Samantha Carter had caught herself halfway down the small flight of stairs and managed to keep from falling. She was now sweeping the room with her assault rifle as she moved toward the MALP remote monitoring device that had been sent ahead of them to make sure the area was safe before the human explorers came through. The third member of their team, Teal'c, formerly a resident of the planet Chulack and the first prime to the evil goa'uld Apophis before he'd allied himself with SG-1 in order to free his people from slavery, was standing calmly at the bottom of the steps as though the trip through the wormhole had not ruffled him in the least. He held his staff weapon at the ready and automatically moved to cover the opposite side of the room from Carter.

Assured that the rest of the team was safe, Jackson moved to the center of the room and scanned the walls of the large chamber looking for indications of which god or gods were worshipped by the inhabitants of this world. The first thing that caught his eye were the clear signs of disuse. Dust and cobwebs coated the walls making any symbols difficult to read. Jackson pulled out his flashlight and moved closer to the wall, focusing on a particular symbol that had captured his attention. Shifting his attention to the area around the symbol, he pulled a cloth out of his pocket and wiped away a layer of cobwebs and dust, before peering intently at the symbols hidden underneath.

"Sam!" he shouted.

"What is it?" Carter asked, looking up from her inspection of the MALP, her assault rifle at the ready.

"These people worshipped Ra."

"That explains why this place looks like it hasn't been used in awhile," responded Carter who was moving from checking the readouts on the MALP to running a check on the circular Dial Home Device located a dozen feet from the stargate that was their key to getting home from this remote planet. "The DHD looks fine," she reported to her teammates.

"It is strange that one of the other system lords did not take over this world after Ra's death," Teal'c said. "It is unlike them to neglect an opportunity to scavenge from the dead."

"Perhaps there's nothing left here worth stealing," Daniel posited. "It's possible someone came right after Ra's death and took anything worth taking then. This world may not be strategically important enough for them to have left any kind of guard or outpost."

"Well, I guess we'll find out," Carter said moving away from the DHD. "There are two doors. Teal'c, you stay here and cover the gate. Contact us immediately if there's an activation. I'll take the left door. Daniel, you take the right. Do a full sweep of each room, and try not to get distracted by any inscriptions. Report in immediately if you find anything interesting."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Jackson responded with irritation.

Carter gave him an easy smile, but said in a serious tone, "I'm going to need your expertise to interpret what we find out there, Daniel, or I'd have Teal'c doing the sweep. I know you can handle yourself, but we don't know who or what's still here and you need to stay focused."

Jackson nodded in acknowledgment as he pulled the 9mm Beretta out of its holster and moved cautiously toward the door on the right. Passing through it, he found himself in a long corridor lined with several doors offset on either side of the hall. Carefully advancing to the first door on the left side of the corridor, he moved to the side of the door out of the firing range of anyone who might be inside and activated the doorswitch. When it swished open, he quickly stepped inside, sweeping the room with the gun. His searching eyes found only a small windowless room that had probably at one time been used for storage, but was now completely empty.

Daniel returned to the main hall and started down to the next door, which was on the right side of the hall. His heart was racing as he hit the doorswitch and pivoted into the room. His first impression was that it appeared to have been an antechamber of some kind. There were some ornate decorations on the walls -- mostly depictions of Ra -- but nothing else. As he returned to the hall, the silence in the building was almost deafening.

Jackson proceeded further down the hall to the next door, on the left side of the corridor, thumbed the control and pivoted into the room with his weapon at the ready. It was another small room, barely the size of a supply closet on the SGC base, and, again, totally empty. Letting out a breath of nervous impatience, he backed carefully out of the room, returning to the hallway to move to his next door, which was on the right.

_Bingo!_ he thought to himself as he approached carefully and saw that it was a large double door, with ornate carving all around it. He activated the door switch and the twin doors swished open. As he entered the room, Jackson's first thought was that it was much larger than any of the others he had seen so far, and almost three times as large as the gate room. Moving further into the cavernous space, his attention was caught by the ornate carvings and intricate scrollwork that decorated the space. He noted that several of the walls had inscriptions, but he ignored them for the time being, remembering Carter's warning.

Facing him in the center of the room was a large platform with a pair of thrones, one larger and more ornate than the other and topped by the symbol of Ra. To the left of the thrones, the far end of the room was divided from the main space by a row of columns. The Roman architecture of the columns piqued Jackson's interest since it was so different than the Egyptian influence displayed throughout the rest of the room. As he approached the columned section, he heard a low hum coming from the area. Carefully moving forward, using one of the columns as a shield, Jackson slid his head carefully from behind the limited cover provided by the column and could only stand and stare dumbfounded at the scene before him.

The area behind the columns contained a chaise lounge, a small table with two ornately carved chairs and a life-sized statute of the human host of the goa'uld who had called himself Ra. Jackson winced at the likeness, remembering clearly how the man's soft, effeminate features and slight frame had been in sharp contrast to his cruel and inhumane treatment of those around him.

Jackson was so focused on the statue, he almost jumped out of his skin when a soft voice inquired in the goa'uld language, "Has Lord Ra finally returned? It has been so long, I was beginning to think he abandoned me."

Clutching the 9mm tightly, Jackson turned toward the voice and aimed the weapon. Standing on the other side of the column barrier, and slightly hidden behind one of them, was a beautiful young woman. She had alabaster skin, long black hair and dark eyes and wore a Roman style gown that appeared to be of 1st or 2nd century A.D. design. "Who are you? What are you doing here?" he asked.

She stared at him assessingly, "You do not bear the accoutrements of Ra's guards. Who are you and what are you doing in his palace?"

"We're explorers. We came through the stargate and found this place. We thought it was deserted."

"Then you should go before Ra returns. He will be very angry if he finds you here and may cause you harm."

"Ra is dead," Jackson responded relaxing his grip on the 9mm slightly. "He's been dead for almost 10 years now."

"Dead?" she asked, clearly confounded by the concept. "How could he be dead? He is a god who has lived for millennia. I know because I have been his prisoner for much of that time. Have you come to free me at last?" she asked hopefully.

Not sure how to respond to that, Jackson activated his walkie-talkie. "Sam, I've found something very interesting. You should come right away. Second door on the right."

"On my way," Carter's voice crackled over the walkie-talkie.

Daniel started to move toward the woman, but she cried out, "Stop!"

"I won't hurt you," Daniel said comfortingly, but he stopped anyway. "I just wanted to come a little closer so it would be easier for us to talk."

"You mustn't get too close to the barrier," the woman said, reaching her finger out tentatively toward a place between the columns. There was a loud sizzling sound accompanied by a burst of light, and she cried out in pain as she pulled back from the barrier nursing her finger. Daniel was startled to see it had been badly burned by the contact. "I do not know if it will harm you as it does me. Ra could move through it as though it were not even there."

"His personal shield probably protected him. Why are you his prisoner?"

The woman was still cradling her injured hand as she stood across the barrier from him looking down at the burned finger. When her eyes raised slowly back to his, they were misted with tears. "My people were enslaved by another goa'uld long ago. I was given to Ra as a peace offering so that he would not attempt to take our world for himself."

"Daniel! Where are you?" Carter's voice came from the door leading to the hallway.

"Over here, Sam," Daniel called back. "On the left side of the room, past the thrones, down by the columns."

The sound of Carter's boots smacking against the stone floor reverberated through the chamber. "This place is the size of Grand Central Station," Carter commented as she made her way over to Daniel, her assault rifle held at the ready. "What's up?"

Daniel pointed and Carter's mouth dropped open for a moment when she saw the young woman. Recovering herself quickly, she kept the rifle pointed directly at the stranger.

"Sam, it's okay. She's behind some kind of forcefield. She can't do anything to us."

"How can you be sure?" Carter asked.

"Because she showed me. When she touched the barrier, it burned her. Show her your hand."

The woman held out her hand and Daniel felt the first pricklings of alarm. The burn that had covered most of her finger a few minutes ago was practically gone.

"It doesn't look like much of an injury to me," Carter said.

"It was worse before," Daniel said quietly.

"How much worse?"

"Her entire finger was red and swollen."

"So she heals very quickly."

"So it seems."

Carter and Jackson stood surveying the captive woman warily. She began to move restlessly behind the barrier, clearly becoming agitated. "Have I done something wrong? Are you angry with me?" she asked.

It took Jackson a moment to realize that she was speaking in English. "How do you know our language?" he asked.

"I heard you speak it," she said, clearly perplexed by the question.

"But that was only a few sentences. How could you speak it so fluently after only hearing a few sentences? Have you seen others like us before and heard them speak it?"

"Ra has had others similar to you over the years, but none who spoke in exactly the same way."

"Then how . . ."

Carter cut off Daniel's question with one of her own. "Is there anyone else here with you?"

"Only you," she responded softly.

"And how long were you here by yourself before we came?"

"It is hard to be sure. Five years, maybe six. When Ra went away several years before that, he left some guards here to protect the palace and ensure that none of his enemies attempted to steal me from him. As the years passed and Ra did not return, the guards slowly disappeared. The last one tried to free me before he left, but he did not know how to turn off the barrier. So he left without me."

"And you've been here all alone for five years," Daniel asked, compassion clear in his voice.

"Yes."

"Daniel." Carter's voice held a warning and Jackson looked at her in confusion.

"What?"

Carter stared at Daniel as she asked the next question. "And how is it you've survived for five years without any food or water. I don't see any supplies in that room."

Startled, Daniel turned back to scan the space again and realized Carter was right.

"I have no need of such things," the woman responded.

"Why not?" Daniel asked. "All human beings need food and water to survive."

She looked at him, perplexed, then realization dawned on her face. "You could not have come for me, then. You do not even know what I am."

Slowly she backed away from the barrier and stood in the center of the chamber, closing her eyes. She lifted her hands toward them, but as they watched in stunned surprise, the hands seemed to just melt away, with the rest of her body following. The gelatinous fluid that remained flowed into the shape of bird, and within seconds a phoenix appeared, as though it had sprung to life from one of the ornate carvings on the walls. The bird moved closer to the barrier toward them, then turned and flew into the air, gracefully soaring around the small enclosure until it began melting again, this time becoming a hooded cobra that crawled it's way back across the floor and stood on the other side of the enclosure, it's tongue flicking out periodically as it surveyed the astonished humans. Finally, the snake drew back from the barrier and the creature melted one last time, returning to the human form they had first seen.

"What the hell!" Carter said, unconsciously shifting her rifle into a clearer firing position. "I thought she was just a goa'uld. What was that?"

"Shapeshifter," Daniel mumbled as he felt something pull inside of him, a memory that wanted desperately to break free but would not. He closed his eyes, trying to force it to come, but finally gave up in frustration.

"What is it, what's wrong?" Carter asked.

"What? Oh, nothing. I just thought, for a minute, that I was remembering something. I felt something, like recognition, when I thought about shapeshifters, but whatever it was won't come."

"Do you think it's something from when you were ascended?"

Daniel thought for a moment and finally shook his head in frustration. "I don't know. It just won't come."

Carter pulled out her walkie-talkie, "Teal'c, report."

A moment later the walkie-talkie flared to life, "All is quiet here, Colonel Carter."

Carter thought a moment, weighing the various options. Finally, she clicked the walkie-talkie on again. "Teal'c, Daniel and I have found something . . . interesting. Maintain your position for the time being. I may need you to activate the gate so we can contact the SGC."

"Very well," Teal'c responded.

As Carter examined the barrier, Daniel sat on the ground beside it, looking in at the shapeshifter, who was still in the form of the dark-haired woman. "What's your name," he asked.

"Ra called me Phoenix," she responded.

"The Phoenix is constantly reborn so I can see why he thought that was fitting, but that's what Ra called you. What is **your** name," Daniel repeated. "What do you call yourself or what did others of your kind call you before you came to Ra?"

She smiled softly. "In their natural state, our kind do not communicate as you do. There is no need for words to describe who we are. We simply are. If you wish to give me a designation, you may call me Aurora."

"Aurora, that's a pretty name. In Roman mythology, Aurora was the goddess of the dawn, the bringer of the new day. I'm Daniel Jackson and that is Colonel Samantha Carter," he said, pointing to Sam who was staring intently at one of the columns.

"What I am frightens your friend . . . and you," she said softly.

"We've encountered shapeshifters before," he said. "We had a . . . misunderstanding with them. They thought we were trying to harm the people they were protecting so they infiltrated our world by taking the forms of some of our people and tried to destroy our facility. So we're a bit nervous about your abilities. Can you change into anything you want, or are there limitations?"

"Within the confines of my prison, my ability to shift is limited to things I know or remember from my previous life. If I am able to touch something, I can duplicate it exactly. Otherwise, I can only try to copy it, but the appearance will not be exact."

"DNA," came Samantha Carter's distracted voice. "Do you mean that if you touch someone you can reproduce its DNA exactly?"

Aurora frowned, considering. "If the DNA you speak of are the tiny cells that make up all living things, then yes, that is what I can do."

Carter signaled to Daniel to join her several yards from the barrier, "So she's similar to the aliens who protect Tonane and the Salish. If we let her out of that cage and she touches one of us, she can become that person and the rest of us wouldn't know the difference."

"We can't just leave her here, Sam," Daniel protested. "She's a living being. It would be inhumane to leave her here totally alone. Besides, how do we know who would eventually find her. Do you really want her falling into the hands of someone like Anubis? Can you imagine what he'd do with his own personal shapeshifter at his disposal."

Carter gripped the assault rifle tighter in one hand as she ran the other impatiently up and down her thigh, weighing her options.

"We need to contact the SGC and get the General's input on this."

Daniel nodded agreement and Carter activated her walkie-talkie. "Teal'c, I need you to dial home so I can send a message through, then bring the MALP down here. There's something the General is going to need to see.

Less than five minutes later, Teal'c came striding through the door with the MALP in tow. "What have you found that is so interesting?" he asked.

"You'll see in a minute," Carter said. "Let's set it up over here."

They moved the MALP into position a few feet from the barrier. Carter adjusted the camera so it was pointing at her for the moment.

"What's going on, Carter?" came the voice of Brig. General Jack O'Neill.

"We've found something interesting, sir, and need to know how you want us to handle it," she responded.

O'Neill's face filled the screen as he leaned into the camera back at the SGC, squinting at the viewscreen on his end. "Where? What is it?"

"Just a minute, sir," Carter said, turning the camera toward the barrier. "Aurora, would you mind repeating what you did a few minutes ago."

"If you wish," the woman said with resignation, moving to the center of the chamber again. A few seconds later the phoenix flew across the chamber, then the snake crawled toward the barrier and then Aurora was herself again.

"Holy shit," O'Neill said. "What the hell was that?"

"She's a shapeshifter, sir. She's been a prisoner of Ra for centuries. She was abandoned here when Ra's guards defected after his death. There's a forcefield trapping her."

"Interesting, indeed," Teal'c said, his staff weapon aimed unwaveringly at the alien.

"She's been here totally alone for five years, Jack," Daniel added poking his head into the camera's field of vision. "We need to help her."

"Help her how?" O'Neill asked, running his hand through his close-cropped hair.

"Get her out from behind that barrier for starters," Daniel said. "Then help her find her way home or, at least, to her own people. We think it's possible that she's related in some way to the shapeshifters who protect Tonane and the Salish."

"Are we sure setting her free is a good idea?" O'Neill asked. "How do we know she's not behind that forcefield because she's dangerous?"

"She was Ra's prisoner, Jack," Daniel said in frustration. "He's kept her in a cage, treating her like some kind of exotic pet for centuries. That's no way for any sentient being to live. The least we can do is free her."

"Carter?" came O'Neill's annoyed voice.

"I've examined the forcefield device and think I can deactivate it without harming the shapeshifter or destroying the technology. It would be good for us to have an opportunity to study how it works. We might be able to use the technology or at least find a way to adapt it to other uses."

"Technology is good," O'Neill said still frowning, "but I want you to be absolutely sure before you turn it off that you're not in any danger from . . . her, it, whatever that thing is."

"We're not," Daniel said, surprising even himself with his conviction.

"Carter!" O'Neill barked, the hand raking through his short crop of hair a sure sign he was losing patience with the discussion.

"It's all right, sir. Everything's under control," she said calmly to O'Neill before stepping out of camera range to round on Daniel. "What is with you?" she hissed. "You've been here a sum total of 20 minutes. How can you be so sure she's not dangerous?"

Daniel's face was troubled, "I don't know how, Sam, I just know. I feel it in my gut. We have to help her. It's wrong to leave her here like this. It's just wrong."

Carter shook her head and stepped back in front of the camera. "Sir, I concur with Daniel that we should release the alien. If we found our way here, it's only a matter of time before Ba'al or one of the other goa'uld does too. It would be much more dangerous to leave her here and let her fall into their hands."

"So what do you propose we do, Carter?" O'Neill asked testily, "Bring it back to the base? What happens if it suddenly decides it doesn't like the guest quarters and turns into the jelly stuff and just slides under the door? We can't have a shapeshifter running loose on a top secret military installation."

"Perhaps you could try contacting Thor, O'Neill" Teal'c suggested. "Perhaps the Asgard will know how to contact the shapeshifters on Tonane's world as we will not be able to reach them since they buried their gate. Or perhaps they may know where others of her kind are and can take her to them."

O'Neill was still frowning, but said, "I'll make the call and get back to you."

"We'll leave the gate open as long as possible and continue to transmit the visual from the MALP, sir. If it looks like anything is going wrong, you can shut it down from your end immediately."

"Make sure nothing goes wrong, Carter. O'Neill out."

The video screen went blank and Carter finally let out the breath she'd been holding.

"Well, all of this discussion is moot if we don't figure out how this forcefield works and how to deactivate it," she said. "Aurora, has anyone ever fired a staff weapon at the forcefield from the outside?"

"The last of my jailers tried that in an attempt to free me before he left," the woman responded. "The energy was simply absorbed by the field and made it even stronger for a time."

"Did he point it directly at the field or did he try shooting the columns themselves?"

Aurora frowned a moment in concentration. "I believe he aimed for the space where the field comes out of the column."

"Did it hurt you at all when he tried that?"

"No. I stood far away from the barrier."

"Then that'll be our last ditch effort. Did you ever see anyone tinkering with controls or panels of any kind for the forcefield?"

"Ra had a handheld device he sometimes used to change the strength of the field. At lower levels the guards could pass through some items to me without harm to themselves, while the field would still cause me harm."

"It sounds like it's specifically tuned to her cellular structure," Carter said thoughtfully.

"Is that good?" Daniel asked.

Carter shrugged, "It could be. It might mean we'll be able to pass through the field without injury. That might be helpful if I need a closer look at those columns. Our best bet, though, is to find that control device she was talking about. Unless Ra had it with him when his ship was blown up, it should be here somewhere."

Daniel looked around thoughtfully and his eyes landed on the thrones. "Let me do some poking around. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Jackson went over to the dais holding the thrones and walked thoughtfully around its circumference, studying the design of the elaborate pieces intently, looking for any indication of a secret drawer or panel. After a few minutes with no success, he sat down in the larger throne, hoping the different perspective would prove more fruitful. He ran his fingers carefully over both arms, finding nothing. He sat back for a moment looking over the room and drumming his fingers on the right arm. The throne was so large that even at 6', Daniel felt small sitting in it. And Ra had been even smaller, Daniel remembered. His host had been a teenage boy, barely 5'6", if that, and very slender. He would have looked like a child in this seat. Unless, of course, there was a reason he wanted it to be this large.

Daniel shifted his body to the left side of throne and carefully ran his fingers over the exposed seat area on the right side. Just as he was about to give up and try the other side, one searching finger passed over a small indentation where the seat met the arm. Ra had also had small, delicate hands, so Daniel was not surprised to find that his own fingers were too large to manipulate the control. Undaunted, he pulled a small tool kit out of one of the inner pockets of his fatigue jacket and selected a thin probe from it. Carefully, he worked the probe into the indentation and couldn't help grinning when he heard the satisfying sound of a latch coming open. A small section of the seat popped up slightly, giving him just enough of a handhold to pull it the rest of the way open.

"Sam!" he called out excitedly. "Can you come here for a minute."

"What is it?" Carter asked as she crossed the room toward him. "What did you find?"

"Oh, lots of good stuff," he said with a smile. "This haul should keep them busy at Area 51 for quite awhile."

Carter peered into the small opening and her eyes widened as she realized that even though the opening was narrow, the hidden compartment it served went down almost a foot and was as long and wide as the seat of the throne. And it was crammed full of jewels, coins, figurines and a variety of what looked like goa'uld control devices. She could see at least two of the hand devices that could cause injury or healing depending on the skill of the user, several of the small personal shield devices and a few others she didn't recognize. At the top of the pile, though, closest to the opening was a small device that was obviously meant to be used as a hand held controller.

"That looks like the device Aurora told us about," Sam said, reaching in tentatively to pick it up.

"Be careful, Sam," Daniel said intently, "Ra wasn't stupid. It might be booby trapped."

"You've been watching too many Indiana Jones movies, Daniel," Sam responded with a smile, as she pulled the controller out of the compartment without incident.

"You never know," Daniel said with what Sam thought might actually be a tinge of disappointment that the room hadn't started to collapse around them. "There are plenty of those types of incidents that have been written up in the archaeological journals over the years. It's not all made up."

"I'm sure it's not," Sam said distractedly, more concerned with figuring out how to operate the small device than with ancient booby traps.

"Hey, Teal'c, come over and help me out here," Daniel called out, burying his arm in the seat of the throne as he started to shovel out a variety of treasures. "And bring my knapsack over."

Carter approached the barrier and started fiddling with the buttons on the controller. As she watched, the electronic buzz of the barrier flared, then slowly began to ebb. "Daniel, Teal'c, I need you over here," she said. "I'm going to try and bring it down now."

Teal'c was at her side in seconds, his staff weapon at the ready. Daniel lagged behind, the overstuffed knapsack thrown over his shoulder. When he finally reached the others, he made no move to draw his weapon and simply stood watching dispassionately.

"Daniel?"

"She won't hurt us, Sam," he said with a mixture of conviction and stubbornness that infuriated the Colonel while giving her a momentary flash of sympathy for O'Neill, who she now realized had shown incredible restraint over the years with the archaeologist and his idealistic streak.

"Besides, she's a shapeshifter. What good's a gun going to do if she does decide to hurt us," Daniel added, giving her his best 'whatever will be, will be' look.

Shaking her head, Carter said, "If you're not going to be armed, then stand back a little so you're not in the way in case we have to fire."

Holding the controller with one hand and her zat with the other, Carter flicked the switch to what she believed was the 'off' position. The buzzing from the area of the barrier stopped. Aurora stepped forward tentatively and carefully reached her hand out to where the barrier had been. Her hand continued through and she cried out in delight, leaping quickly through the space where the barrier had been.

"I'm free! Free at last! How can I ever thank you?" she gushed. "Just ask and it shall be yours. When I return to my people, they will be so grateful, they, too, will give you anything you ask."

The conversation was interrupted by a loud groaning sound from the columned area. "Damn!" Carter shouted. "There must be structural damage over there. The columns are shifting. The forcefield must have been the only thing holding that section together. Now that it's gone, the columns are starting to collapse." She worked the controller frantically. "The initial shift must have knocked it far enough out of alignment to prevent it from reactivating. Let's get out of here! Fast! Before it all comes down on top of us!"

"Are you sure it wasn't a boo. . .?"

"Don't even say it, Daniel. Just get moving!" Carter shouted. "Teal'c, bring the MALP if you can. If you can't, just leave it."

Daniel grabbed Aurora's hand and pulled her with him as they raced from the main chamber, listening to the sounds of collapse cascading behind them. "It sounds like the whole thing is coming down," Daniel yelled.

"I hope they saw what's going on back at the base and shut the gate down already. Be ready to dial as soon as we get to the gateroom. We're going to P5C-898."

"Why?" Daniel asked, "there's nothing there." Carter's quick glance at Aurora was his only answer.

They sped into the gateroom and were relieved to see the gate had indeed been shut down. Daniel's hands started hitting the appropriate symbols almost before he'd stopped moving. He hit the final symbol, then pressed the red activator in the center of the device. Within seconds, the wormhole opened, but even the loud whoosh it made couldn't drown out the sounds of the building falling down around them.

"Let's go," Carter shouted, jumping into the swirling puddle of energy. Teal'c followed after her dragging the MALP behind him as if it were weightless. Daniel took one last look back and saw the doorway to the room starting to buckle before he pulled Aurora up the stairs and into the wormhole.

* * *


	2. UnityCh2

_**Chapter 2**_

Their exit from the wormhole was unceremonious and undignified, the momentum of their run into it causing them to be spit out haphazardly at the other end, tossed carelessly to the ground like breadcrumbs left for the birds.

Daniel struggled to his feet, the heavy backpack making it difficult, and reached out a hand to help Aurora back to her feet. She smiled at him gratefully, "It has been a very, very long time since I have gone through the Ring of the Gods. I'd forgotten how strange it feels."

"You've been through the stargate before?" Daniel asked thoughtfully. "Then your world has one?"

"Our world itself does not, but there is one in our galaxy. Our people did not use it often, only when they were in a great hurry to go far distances, but we received many visitors from other worlds who used that mode of transport."

"Do you know the stargate symbols for your world?"

"It has been a very long time," Aurora said doubtfully, "I am not sure if I remember."

Daniel led her over to the DHD. "Look at the symbols for a few minutes and let me know if you remember."

"Daniel! What are you doing?" Carter asked striding over to join them.

"Aurora's planet has a stargate, well, it's near one anyway. She's trying to remember the symbols."

Sam glanced at Aurora nervously and signaled for Daniel to follow her several feet away. Teal'c moved closer to the DHD to keep an eye on Aurora.

"Daniel, do you really think it's wise to just take her back to her planet without any kind of preliminary investigation? She said herself she hasn't been there for centuries. You don't have any idea what we'll find there. Besides, there are a lot of things she could tell us about Ra and the other system lords while we check out the planet a little more cautiously."

"She's just looking at the symbols now to see if she remembers."

"And how do you know she won't suddenly start slapping symbols in and then run for it when the gate opens?"

Daniel rubbed his suddenly aching head and snapped irritably, "And what difference will it make if she does? She could turn into a bird any second and just fly away if she wants. Or become dirt and just sink into the ground. We're better off trying to help her than appearing to be her enemies."

"Daniel," Aurora called excitedly.

He turned from Carter and strode the few feet back to the DHD. "What is it?"

"These are the symbols in their proper order," she said, pointing them out on the DHD. "I've never been to this world before so I do not know what the 7th symbol would be."

"We have," Daniel replied, pulling out his notebook and scribbling down the six symbols she had given him along with a seventh. "It's this one," he said pointing.

"Then I can finally go home," Aurora said smiling happily at him.

Carter had followed Daniel back to the DHD but had missed seeing Aurora point to the symbols. She leaned over Daniel's shoulder to look at the symbols he'd copied in the notebook and gave an involuntary gasp of shock.

Daniel turned and saw her face had gone pale. "What is it, Sam? What's wrong?"

"Don't you recognize that address, Daniel?"

He looked at it in confusion and shook his head.

"Replace the last symbol with Earth's designator and look at it again."

"I don't . . . ," he started to say, but then the memory came. "Oh, no," he said feeling suddenly very sick to his stomach.

"That gate address has been locked out of Earth's dialing computer for a very good reason," Carter said. "We are not going there under any circumstances."

"What is it?" Aurora asked with concern, having listened to the cryptic conversation and noticed how pale they had both gotten. "What's wrong? Why can we not go to my planet? I must see if my people are well."

"We visited those coordinates once, Aurora," Daniel said numbly. They took us to what looked like an interplanetary transfer station. There was a stargate in one room and another kind of transport device in the other."

"Yes," Aurora said, "that is it. The secondary system goes to the planet itself. It has safeguards to protect our people from those wishing to do us harm."

"Daniel accidentally got transported down to that planet," Carter said coldly. "When he was finally sent back to us a few days later, he was close to death. Our doctors were barely able to save his life."

"That cannot be," Aurora said, clearly puzzled. "My people would not harm you. The goa'uld must still be in control there. They must have been the ones who hurt you. Do you not know who it was who injured you?"

"No," Daniel responded awkwardly. "I was drugged so I can't remember anything that happened while I was on the planet. I think it had something to do with a goa'uld named Niirti, and one named Janus, but I don't remember exactly what happened."

"Niirti! The evil one!" Aurora said venomously. "She is the one who took me from my people and gave me to Ra. If she is still there torturing my people, I must go back and help them."

"Niirti is no longer among your people; she is dead," Teal'c said evenly. "Col. Carter and I witnessed her death with our own eyes."

Aurora looked frantically to Daniel for confirmation.

"It's true, Aurora. Niirti's dead."

"You spoke of another called Janus. Is he also dead."

Daniel's head suddenly felt as if it wanted to explode. The memories were there, ready to cascade out of him, but as hard as he fought, he still could not reach them. It was as if a stone wall had been built between them and his conscious mind. His hand went unconsciously to his forehead and he began to rub it trying to massage away the pain that now felt like a knife through his skull. He forced himself to focus on the question that had been asked and finally shook his head wearily, the frustration clear in his voice, "I don't know. I just can't remember. No matter how hard I try, it won't come. I know the memories are there, but it's like they're behind a wall and I just can't get to them."

"Perhaps I can help you," Aurora said gently, stepping toward him.

"Help him how?" Carter cut in, stepping between them, her rifle at the ready.

Aurora frowned in confusion but stopped moving. "If there is a physical injury preventing him from accessing the memories, I may be able to heal it."

"How?" Carter asked suspiciously.

"I do not know how to explain it," Aurora said helplessly. "I can just do it."

"Sam, please let her try," Daniel said wearily. "I've always felt that those memories were important and that I need to remember what happened on that planet. It's been almost two years now. I want to know what happened to me down there."

Carter wavered at the defeated tone of his voice and the obvious pain etching his face, but held her ground. "We need to report in to the SGC before we decide anything. General O'Neill needs to know that we're alive, where we are and what our current situation is. I'm not even going to consider doing this until that's taken care of."

"Fine," Daniel said wearily. "Let's get on with it."

"Teal'c, dial home while I get the MALP ready."

"As you wish, Colonel Carter," Teal'c responded, moving in front of the DHD and beginning to hit the symbols that would open the gateway to Earth.

Sam moved from between Daniel and Aurora but looked at the woman warily. "Why don't you come with me for now."

Aurora looked unhappily at Daniel but responded, "If that is what you wish."

* * *

"We have an incoming wormhole, sir," Tech Sargent Walter Davis reported to an anxiously pacing O'Neill.

"It's about damn time. What the hell have they been doing!"

"We're receiving SG-1's code, sir. They're transmitting from P5C-898."

"At least Carter had the good sense not to bring that thing back here."

"I have audio and video, sir."

O'Neill leaned in to look at the viewscreen. "Carter, what's going on?"

"Sorry for the interruption, sir. We had a little problem back on P4C-447. When we brought the forcefield down to free Aurora, a damaged section of the columned area started to collapse, causing a chain reaction throughout the structure. We were able to get back to the gate room and dial out before it all fell down on top of us."

"So, no technology to study after all?" O'Neill said gruffly.

"I wouldn't say that, sir. Daniel found a stash of goa'uld devices that may prove interesting. From what I could see, we've seen most of them before, but you never know, there might be something new among them."

"It's good to know the mission's not a total loss," O'Neill responded caustically.

Carter hesitated a moment, looking uncomfortable, and O'Neill felt a nervous quaver go through his stomach.

"There's been another development, sir."

"I'm not going to like this, Carter, am I?"

"Doubtful, sir. It turns out Aurora's people have access to a stargate. She gave us the gate address and wants us to send her home."

"Sounds simple enough. What's the problem?"

Carter sighed heavily, "The gate address is to P3X-846."

"Shit," O'Neill said, "shit, shit, shit." He didn't even realize he'd put his hand into a fist until it smashed against the observation window overlooking the gate room. "Ow! Damn it."

Davis jumped up from his seat in alarm, "Are you alright, sir."

"Yeah, I'm fine," O'Neill muttered rubbing the aching hand as he tried to get a rein on his emotions. There were a lot of bad memories etched indelibly in his mind, but the memory of that day was one of the few that still gave him nightmares. He could still remember every word of the heated argument with Carter about whether they should make a rescue attempt that was suddenly interrupted by the linguistics expert they'd called in for help yelling something about Daniel. They'd all turned dumbfounded to see Daniel laying on the floor of the transport station practically dead. He'd awakened for a few seconds -- just long enough to tell them to deactivate the transport device -- before lapsing into unconsciousness again. He'd barely survived and it had been a long and difficult recovery afterwards. The experience itself and the almost total loss of memory that accompanied it had pushed Daniel as close to the edge as O'Neill had ever seen him. He'd bounced back after a few weeks, but O'Neill knew that experience still haunted the archaeologist.

"Sir, are you there? Is something wrong?" Carter's worried voice came from the speakers on the main console.

O'Neill sighed heavily and leaned back over the viewscreen. "Everything's just peachy, Colonel," he responded in a voice dripping with sarcasm. "And before you even ask, tell Daniel the answer is 'no'. He is not going back to that planet under any circumstances unless he's willing to do it over my dead body. Is that perfectly clear?"

"Yes, sir," she said looking uncomfortable again.

"Oh, great! There's more! Please tell me there's not more, Carter."

"Sorry, sir," Carter responded. "Aurora says she can help Daniel remember what happened to him on that planet, but she can't explain exactly what she's going to do or how she is able to do it. Daniel wants to let her try, but I'm not convinced it's a good idea."

O'Neill rubbed his face thoughtfully as he considered the request, then ran a hand through his close cropped hair as he began pacing again. He finally returned to the viewscreen, "Where's Daniel?" he barked.

"I'm right here, Jack," Daniel said wearily as his head poked into the left side of the viewscreen.

"I don't like this, Daniel. I don't like it at all. How do you know it wasn't one of her people that drugged you and almost killed you in the first place. How can you be sure she's not just going to screw with your mind some more?"

"Look, Jack, I'm doing this whether you like it or not. Why don't you make it easy on all of us and just say 'yes.' It'll save Sam and Teal'c from all the grief of trying to stop me, because they're not going to succeed. I've told all of you all along that I've always felt an urgency about those memories, that it was important that I remember what happened on that planet. I'm not giving up the chance to finally find out what happened to me down there."

O'Neill felt a surge of anger and frustration followed by a sense of helplessness. Not for the first time since he'd taken over command of the SGC, he wished he could drop everything and head through the gate and back to his team again. At least then he'd be able to knock some sense into Daniel's thick, stubborn head personally.

"Carter."

"Yes, sir."

O'Neill sighed heavily before speaking. "We're going to let Daniel do this really stupid thing, but keep a close eye on what's happening. If it looks like the alien is hurting him in any way, shoot to kill."

"Yes, sir," Carter said vehemently.

"Dammit, Jack," Daniel said with obvious annoyance.

"Shut up, Daniel, before I come through that gate and knock some sense into you myself. Carter, keep the gate open and the audio and video feeds operating as long as you can. I've got SG-11 on standby in case you need help."

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

* * *

"Okay, let's do this," Daniel said to Aurora with more confidence than he felt. "What do I have to do."

She walked over to him and held out her hands. "Just take my hands."

He deliberately restrained himself from giving one last nervous glance to Carter and Teal'c. He didn't want to give either of them an excuse to step in and stop this. Taking one last steadying breath, he reached out and took her outstretched hands in his own.

"Close your eyes and relax," Aurora said softly. "Breath evenly."

Carter watched anxiously, her weapon at the ready. She saw Aurora close her eyes and match her breathing to Daniel's. After a few seconds Aurora's skin began to ripple and shimmer. As Carter watched in amazement, the alien's features began to change. Within seconds there were two Daniels standing in front of her, hands locked together, eyes closed, breathing in unison. "Dammit," Carter cried out aiming the weapon at the Daniel she knew was the alien, "I knew she was up to something."

Teal'c had also been watching raptly and already had his staff weapon primed and ready to fire. But before either of them had time to react, Aurora's skin began to ripple and shimmer again. A few seconds later, she had reverted to her female shape. Slowly she opened her eyes and looked at Daniel with something close to awe. His eyes opened slowly and he squinted at her in confusion.

"You did not tell me you are of the Ancients," she said softly.

"I'm not really, not anymore anyway. I broke the rules so they sent me back," he said uncomfortably.

"That is of no consequence. You still bear their essence. I found two places where your memories have been affected. I can do nothing about those that have been blocked by the Ancients. Their powers are far beyond any I possess. But the other will be very simple to repair. Do you wish me to do so?"

"Yes," Daniel said without hesitation.

"Very well," she said gently. "Perhaps you should either sit or lie down. When the memories come back to you they may be very vivid and powerful - strong enough to knock you off your feet if you are standing."

"I'll sit," Daniel said, lowering himself cross legged to the ground.

Aurora sat across from him, then carefully reached out her hands and placed one on either side of his face. "Close your eyes again, relax and breath, just as you did before."

Daniel did as he had been told as Aurora gently brushed her fingers along the sides of his face. Carter and Teal'c were watching intently, their weapons still at the ready. Carter kept her eyes glued to Daniel's face, waiting for something to happen, but when it did, she was too surprised to react in time to do anything about it. As Aurora's fingers passed over Daniel's face again, a tiny drop fell from one of the fingers. It landed on his left temple and disappeared into the skin.

"What was that?" Carter said frantically, "what did you do to him."

At the same instant Daniel gasped and his body convulsed. Aurora reached out and caught him before he could hit the ground. He laid in her arms trying to fight against the onslaught of memories that were sweeping over him like tidal waves, threatening to drown all conscious thought. He could hear Carter's frantic voice in the background, "Let go of him or I swear I'll shoot! What have you done to him?"

He felt his body moved from the comforting presence of Aurora's arms to the hard ground, then Carter's anxious voice over him saying "Daniel, Daniel. Wake up! Come on. Come back to us, Daniel," and Teal'c's voice edged with concern saying, "Daniel Jackson, are you injured? Can you speak to us?"

He tried to move his mouth to form words to comfort them, to tell them he was all right, but it wasn't time to return to them yet. There was too much that still needed to be seen, and remembered.

"We've got to get him back to the base," Carter said frantically to Teal'c. "We've only got 5 minutes until this wormhole closes and we have to redial. Can you carry him?"

"Indeed," Teal'c responded, lifting the unconscious Jackson over his shoulder into a fireman's carry.

"You should not move him now," Aurora said, clearly upset. "He needs time to reabsorb the memories into his consciousness. All of this movement will disrupt the process."

As if agreeing with her assessment, Daniel let out a small groan. Carter moved anxiously to him and checked his face. His eyes were slightly open and he appeared disoriented. "Get him back home, Teal'c. That's an order," Carter said, casting one last angry glare at Aurora before they stepped into the event horizon of the wormhole, leaving her behind.


	3. UnityCh3

_**Chapter 3**_

Daniel drifted slowly back to consciousness, teased by the steady beeping sounds of the monitors beside his bed. His eyes blinked open once, then again, til finally he was able to open them and keep them open. _What am I doing here?_ he thought groggily.

"He's coming around now, General," came a soft female voice.

Daniel struggled with remembering whose voice it was -- _Dr. Brightman, that's it. I remember that._

"Daniel. Daniel, wake up," came Jack O'Neill's concerned voice. "Tell me what happened."

"Jack," he croaked, looking around in confusion. "How did I get here?"

"Teal'c had to carry you back. Dammit, Daniel, I told you this was a stupid idea. Why don't you ever listen to me," O'Neill barked, concern evident in his voice and his eyes.

Daniel went to turn his head and felt a flare of pain sear through his forehead. "Damn, that hurts," he moaned. "I feel like someone hit me with a sledgehammer."

"What's the last thing you remember?" O'Neill asked.

"I accidentally got transported to the planet with the shapeshifters," Daniel said rubbing his aching head. "They have some kind of security protocol on the transporter device. It wasn't overridden so I was knocked around pretty bad getting down there. A priestess from the temple found me and took me to the temple. Larinda, her name was Larinda."

The memories were coming faster now, and Daniel continued to rub his head as he struggled to make sense of them before they could disappear again. "Niirti had been experimenting on them, trying to make hoc tar by mating the shapeshifters with humans, then putting goa'ulds in the children born of those unions. But she lost control of the experiment. The first goa'uld who was successfully implanted, Janus, took over and chased her out before she could finish, but she disabled the transport device, trapping him on the planet. He didn't understand what she'd been doing. There were other goa'ulds in the mix too. Jack, she was trying to make hoc tar that were also harsesis."

"Slow down, Daniel. You're not making any sense," O'Neill said with concern.

"Yes, he is, O'Neill," Teal'c said his normally placid features twisted into a dark scowl.

"Superhosts with the genetic memory of the goa'uld parents," Carter said amazed. "How did she expect to get away with it?"

"She managed to keep the other goa'uld from finding out for almost 1,000 years," Daniel said wearily. "She probably hoped either no one would care enough to try to repair the transport station or the transport device's internal defenses would neutralize them before they could cause a problem. Or maybe she thought Janus would make short work of any interlopers. Who knows. We could speculate all day."

"What else do you remember?" Carter asked.

Daniel struggled to sit up, but Dr. Brightman gently pushed him back down again. "You need to rest, Daniel. You've given your central nervous system quite a shock. It needs some recovery time." She felt a stab of concern when he simply frowned at her but didn't argue the point. That was a sure sign he was either badly shaken or in significant pain.

Daniel rubbed his hands down the side of his face and concentrated. "The people, good god the people, they don't know the truth. They don't realize what they've become."

"What have they become, Daniel?" O'Neill asked with as much patience as he could muster.

"Larinda called them a species of duality. They only have limited shapeshifting abilities now. They can only shift between two shapes. Each entity is two separate people, that live two separate lives. And neither one knows about the other."

"That's impossible," Carter exclaimed. "How could two individuals share the same body and not know it?"

"Aurora," Daniel suddenly muttered. "Where's Aurora? We can't let her go back there alone. She has to understand what's happened to them before she goes back. Where is she?"

Carter shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably before finally admitting, "We left her back on P5C-898 when we brought you back here." At his shocked look, she added defensively, "we had no idea what she'd done to you, so we certainly weren't going to bring her back here."

"Never mind about that now," O'Neill snapped. "Get back to this two people sharing the same body stuff. What are you talking about?"

Daniel took a steadying breath, trying to get it all in order in his head before saying it out loud. "It's like a bizarre form of multiple personality disorder that lasts for a month at a time. There's a ceremony on the night of the new moon where everyone is given a strong drug that deadens the will so the current personality can't hold on, then the priestess activates a set of chimes that triggers the transformation. Then they all change into their other personalities. But some of them fight it . . . ."

Daniel's voice trailed off as he got caught up in the memory -- the feeling of desperation and panic as he stumbled toward the colisseum, trying to outrun his captors while the drug they'd given him fought for control of his body -- the events feeling as real as if were happening at that moment. He didn't even realize his breathing had turned to quick, panicked gasps until he heard O'Neill's sharp voice, "Daniel! Daniel! What's wrong with him, doctor?!"

The monitors beside the bed had started to blip and bleep wildly as they registered Daniel's suddenly increased heart rate and blood pressure, adding to the cacaphony of noise and sound around him. He concentrated on the sounds, using them as a focus to draw himself out of the too vivid memories.

Dr. Brightman had reacted immediately to the changes in the monitoring equipment and was already by Daniel's side with a syringe in her hand. "That's enough for now, General. He needs to rest. I'm going to give him a sedative to calm him down. His body can't take this level of stress much longer.

"No!" Daniel forced out between gasps that were slowly easing as he concentrated all of his attention on the sound of the monitors. "I'll be alright. No more drugs!"

Brightman hesitated for a moment, looking to O'Neill for permission to go ahead without Daniel's consent.

Daniel had opened his eyes again and seeing the look pass between them, interjected, "Please, Jack. No more drugs." Hating himself for doing it, he played his trump card and, looking pleadingly at O'Neill, added. "Please, Jack. You remember what I went through after they stuffed all that crap in me. No more drugs. I can handle this without them. See, I'm better already."

O'Neill frowned, sensing he was being played, but also noting that the monitors had gone back to their steady, normal rhythms. Brightman was still looking at him expectantly, the syringe of sedative at the ready. "I need him conscious for now, Doctor, but if that happens again, you have my permission to give him the sedative without waiting for further orders."

Brightman frowned disapprovingly, but said, "Yes, sir," as she recapped the syringe and put it into the pocket of her lab coat where it would be handy if needed.

"Thank you," Daniel said with relief, laying his head back on the pillow and closing his eyes for a moment. _Bad idea_, he thought as almost immediately images of twisted human beings, writhing and screaming and seeming to split into two before his eyes began to assault him. He popped his eyes open immediately and concentrated on the sound of the monitors before his breath could do more than give a little hitch. _I'm not there. I'm at the SGC. I'm safe, _he kept repeating over and over in his head, turning it into a calming mantra. "I really need to sit up," he said. "I'm feeling a little queasy. If I keep laying down, I'm going to get sick."

Brightman and O'Neill exchanged glances again, before O'Neill said, "Teal'c, would you help Daniel sit up, please."

"Certainly," Teal'c responded amiably, moving to Jackson's bedside and helping him into a sitting position as one of the nurses moved to activate the switches that would bring the head of the bed up, then settled some pillows behind him.

"Feeling any better," Brightman asked, automatically moving in to take his pulse as she checked the monitor for any sudden drop in blood pressure.

"Yeah, that's a lot better. Thanks." Daniel said, trying to force some gratitude into the small, but hopefully disarming, smile he shot her way. _Thud, that one fell flat, Danny boy_, he thought to himself as she only returned a steely calculating gaze that stated very clearly, 'don't try to play me with the boyish charm, you're way out of your league'.

"Shapeshifters," O'Neill said sharply, bringing the conversation back to its original topic. "What happened to you on that planet?"

"When I first woke up there was a priestess there. Her name was Larinda. And a consul named Octavius. The city is called Remana and it's modeled on first century Rome. I gained the priestess' trust after a few days and she took me to their central temple." He couldn't help the nervous laugh that escaped at the memory, even though it elicited another exchange of nervous glances from those around him. "It was the central chamber of a goa'uld ship. They had actually built the temple around it.

"Anyway, Larinda showed me one of their historical books and explained about the ceremony and how it all worked and told me she wasn't planning to participate so she could help me figure out what was going on. Then one of her attendants brought us food and some water. We both had some, then Octavius showed up holding the chimes. When he rang them, she started to change. Larinda was blonde with green eyes, but suddenly it was like she was two people. The other side of her head started spilling out black hair and I saw another face with intense dark eyes. I started to feel really sick and that's when I realized the food and water had been drugged."

Daniel stopped a moment and took a deep, calming breath. "When the transformation was complete, the dark haired woman was nothing like Larinda. Larinda had been kind and gentle and nurturing, but this one, she called herself Lysandra, was cold and cruel and incredibly arrogant. She started to argue with Octavius and that's when I realized his other personality was the goa'uld Janus. He said he was leaving her there to deal with the problems on the planet while he went to wreak his vengeance on Niirti. When she told him I'd told her, I mean Larinda, that Niirti was dead, he went crazy.

"I'd managed to make it to the door while they were arguing and jammed the control panel from the outside. I didn't have any idea where to go. Larinda hadn't told me where the transport site was, so I was just trying to hide. I headed for the coliseum figuring nobody would notice me in all the chaos once they started changing. I made it there just as the chimes sounded and then they all started pouring out of the building, screaming and crying, their bodies contorting into all sorts of strange shapes."

Daniel shivered involuntarily at the memory and the feelings of helplessness and terror they invoked. Carter's hand went automatically to his shoulder to steady him. He put his hand over hers and gave it a quick squeeze of thanks before returning to his story. "By then I could barely stand up, I was so sick. I could hear Larinda calling me from a distance. There was no cover in the immediate area and I knew I couldn't stay on my feet much longer so I tried to hide in the shadows at the foot of the coliseum. Then I passed out. When I woke up, I was back in the room in the temple where I'd first woken up. Larinda was there and she was very upset and crying. She said Lysandra had killed Octavius then gone after me but she reached the coliseum just as the chimes sounded. Larinda was able to retake control of their body and discovered from Lysandra's mind how to send me back."

The memories had been crystal clear until this point, but now Daniel found he had to reach for them again, dredging them stubbornly from the dark chamber they'd been locked away in for so long. All eyes in the room were on his haunted ones as he reached up and rubbed his temples in frustration, trying to force the memories out. Then suddenly they were there in front of him, just as crystal clear as the earlier ones had been.

Those watching saw his blue eyes widen in stunned shock. "What is it, Daniel? What happened next?" Carter asked, her heart constricting in panic at the look in his eyes, while her comforting hand remained steady on his shoulder.

"Um, she offered me a glass of water, but I wouldn't take it. I felt better than I had when I passed out, but I wasn't taking any chances."

"You thought it might be drugged again," O'Neill said dispassionately, but the hard line of his mouth hinted at the depth of the anger that was boiling underneath.

"Um, possibly, but I was also afraid putting anything in my stomach might make me sick again," Daniel stammered.

O'Neill, Carter and Teal'c exchanged worried glances, knowing something wasn't right about his sudden hesitation to say what they all knew was true. "And then?" O'Neill said.

Daniel's brow crinkled in a frown of concentration and he squirmed uncomfortably under their steady gazes, "She said she didn't know that they'd been planning to kill me and she swore she'd send me home as soon as it was done. I was still a little disoriented so I didn't catch the way she phrased it right away. Then she leaned over and kissed me." Daniel's face flushed bright red with embarrassment at the admission, but just as quickly all the color drained from his face leaving it pale and drawn. "Then I realized the drug was on her lips, but it was too late."

"Oh my god," Carter gasped, squeezing his shoulder sympathetically, before sitting down heavily beside him.

"I don't remember anything after that," he said careful to keep his eyes averted from the others so they wouldn't reveal the tiny lie. None of them needed to know the last thing he remembered was realizing he was naked under the blanket.

"So she blasted you with more drug so she could take the blood samples without you fighting her. But why?" O'Neill asked. "Why didn't she just take them while you were unconscious? And what did she need them for anyway?"

Daniel's head was aching from the strain of remembering and trying to cope with the things he was remembering. "Oh, sorry, I must have skipped that part somehow. It's all really mixed up," he said distractedly.

"It is a great deal to take in all at once, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c said with a touch of concern. "What else have you remembered."

"When Larinda first became Lysandra she said there was a problem with the bloodlines becoming tainted because of all of the intermarrying among the inhabitants. The priestesses kept detailed records of marriages and matings to ensure there were several births from Janus' pure bloodline within every generation, but the other descendants of goa'uld who were continuing to intermarry were exhibiting increasing signs of irrational behavior and madness. She said they needed to introduce pure human dna back into the mix to try and dilute some of the effects of all of that goa'uld dna being mixed together.

"I don't think they understood at all that the madness was being caused by those affected being harsesis and having the genetic memories of the goa'uld parents. They seemed to think it was just a side effect of all the intermarriage among a species that is so fundamentally arrogant and strong-willed."

"So, she planned to use your blood for what?" O'Neill asked. "How could it help?"

"Niirti was a master at genetic engineering, sir," Carter broke in. "Maybe they thought they could use the information she left behind to manipulate the cells in the blood."

"Seems like a long shot. It's a little surprising they weren't just planning to do it the old-fashioned way." O'Neill said. "I mean, why let the golden goose, or gander, as the case may be, go before you're sure something like that is going to work."

"For one thing, sir, it would take too long," Carter said thoughtfully. "It would take several generations for there to be any noticeable affect on the gene pool. If the people are in as serious shape as Daniel is describing, they couldn't afford to wait that long for results."

"I think that was probably part of the original plan though, Jack," Daniel said, the flush rising in his face again. "When I first got there, Larinda kept saying that Lord Janus had sent me as an answer to their prayers. But I think once she realized what Lysandra and Octavius had been up to all along, she couldn't go through with keeping me prisoner there."

"So instead she pumped you with enough drugs to down a full-grown elephant, sucked out almost half your blood and dumped you on the transport platform with no idea whether anybody would be there to pick your sorry ass up and cart you off to a hospital before you died from either a drug overdose or massive blood loss. Quite the humanitarian."

"I'm not saying she's blameless in this, Jack," Daniel snapped back angrily. He closed his eyes against the wall of pain that seemed to be fed by the anger. "Damn, my head hurts," he muttered, pressing the palm of a loosely fisted hand to his forehead as if trying to forcibly push back the pain.

"Okay, that's it," Dr. Brightman said with finality. "Everybody out. His bp and heart rate are starting to go up again and I insist he be allowed to get some rest or that sedative is coming out right now."

"Okay, that's it kids," O'Neill said. "Everybody back to class, recess is over."

The attempt at humor fell flat, as Carter and Teal'c each gave Daniel's hand a quick squeeze and left the room with worry etched on their brows.

"That means you, too, General," Brightman said firmly.

O'Neill's brow went up at that. "Well, okay then. I guess I'm leaving too, Daniel."

"Jack," Daniel said wearily, his eyes closed, but the strain of the last few hours showing clearly on his face.

"What?"

He opened his bleary eyes to focus on O'Neill. "Send somebody back to check on Aurora. Please. She's a full-blooded shapeshifter. I don't know what will happen to her if she goes back there alone. She has no idea what's going on there. At least get someone to warn her what to expect if she does decide to go alone."

"It's already been almost 10 hours since they brought you back, Daniel. She's probably long gone by now."

"Maybe," he responded, his eyes closing against his will, "but promise me you'll try. What happened to me isn't her fault. It's the goa'ulds', as usu . . . ," Daniel's voice faded away as he slipped into sleep.

O'Neill looked over just in time to see Dr. Brightman recap the empty syringe and put it back in her pocket. She returned his gaze evenly and unapologetically. He nodded approval and turned and stalked out of the infirmary.

* * *

Carter and Teal'c exited the wormhole onto P5C-898 and strode quickly over toward the tree Aurora was sitting under. Carter had been surprised when their remote activation of the MALP they had left behind on the planet had showed the woman still there. She had assumed Aurora would have been through the gate to P3X-846 as soon as they were gone.

Aurora looked up at them as they approached and the incredible sadness in her eyes caught Carter by surprise. "Is Daniel still ill?" Aurora asked softly.

"He's resting. Our doctor says he should be fine in a day or two."

"And he remembers all that was lost?" Aurora asked sadly.

"We're not 100 sure yet, but he seems to have most of it back at this point."

"How awful for him," Aurora said, shaking her head. "What terrible memories to possess. It horrifies me that any of my people could be capable of doing such terrible things."

"What do you mean?" Carter asked with consternation. "How can you know what his memories are? We left here before he started talking about them."

"It is so difficult to explain," Aurora said wearily, leaning her head back against the tree and closing her eyes.

Carter felt an involuntary shiver go through her as she realized why the action seemed so familiar -- it was something she had seen Daniel do on more than one occasion.

"In order to be able to heal him, I had to take his form to see where the injury was," Aurora explained. "As I told you when you first found me, if I touch someone, I can duplicate them exactly."

"Including their thoughts and memories?" Carter asked incredulously.

"Yes," Aurora said. "It was wrong of me to examine those memories, I know, but I needed to know if my people are safe. They are not." She shook her head miserably. "And I do not know if I have the power to help them. I am only one. I do not know if it will be enough to undue such terrible damage."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Carter responded. "Daniel asked us to come back and let you know what he remembered because he didn't want you to go to the planet unprepared for what you'd find there."

"Then none of you are willing to go with me," Aurora said bleakly.

"Our superior has forbidden it," Carter said. "General O'Neill is not willing to risk the lives of any of our people after what happened to Daniel last time."

"That is understandable," Aurora said heavily. "Would it make any difference to this General O'Neill to know that it would be different this time."

"In what way," Teal'c asked.

She looked up at them, her eyes meeting each of theirs directly. "Because I know how to override the security protocols. Anyone who accompanies me will be properly prepared for the trip and, therefore, will arrive on the planet fully alert and functional and will not have lost their weapons or anything else they carry with them."

* * *

"Do you remember me using the words 'over my dead body', Carter?" O'Neill snapped the next morning as he, Carter and Teal'c gathered around the conference room table to discuss the latest developments.

"Yes, sir," she said, "but if Aurora really can override the security protocols, there shouldn't be any significant danger. From what Daniel told us, the inhabitants of the planet are not well armed. The safeguards built into the transport device are their primary means of defense against outsiders. We'd arrive on the planet fully armed, which would give us a big advantage over the locals."

"There are a lot of ifs in that scenario, Carter," O'Neill said impatiently. "The biggest one is whether Aurora really has the ability to do the things she says she can do. If it turns out she can't, your team will be at the mercy of the same people who almost killed Daniel. That's a pretty big risk."

"Teal'c and I are ready to take that risk, sir. We feel that there's a lot that can be learned down on that planet."

"And why is it again that we want to go there?" O'Neill asked. "It doesn't sound like they have any technological innovations that would be useful to us. Do they have naquada or naquadria reserves we could use? What's in it for us that you should take that risk?"

"Finding out how the transport system works would be . . . ," Carter started to say, but was interrupted by a tired voice coming from the direction of the stairs leading up to the conference room from the main operations level.

"We have to take the risk because we don't have any other choice."

"Daniel, what are you doing up?" O'Neill asked sternly. "Dr. Brightman told me she was keeping you in the infirmary at least until tomorrow."

Daniel shrugged as he went to his usual chair at the briefing table, "Let's just say I'm not Dr. Brightman's favorite patient right now and leave it at that."

"What do you mean 'we have no other choice', Daniel Jackson," Teal'c inquired.

"We have to know what's going on down on that planet," Jackson said firmly. "We know from what I remembered that we may possibly be dealing with harsesis and that the locals don't understand that or what it means. The situation on the planet was beginning to destabilize when I was there. We have no idea how much worse it's gotten in the two years since then.

"The system lords have been paying much closer attention to long abandoned planets since we discovered the Ancients' hidden defense system in Antarctica. We have no idea whether any of them have decided to investigate P3X-846 and what they may have discovered if they made it down to the planet. The implications of any goa'uld finding those people and attempting to use them, either as hosts or simply for the racial memory they may have contained within them, are incalculable."

"I have to agree with Daniel on this one, sir," Carter stated directly. "We can't allow such a potentially dangerous, unstable populace to fall under the control of the goa'uld. And we can't allow Niirti's research that's in the computers on that planet to fall into their hands either. We know from the fact that Aurora still exists and from having met the protectors of the Salish that there are other shapeshifters out there. With Niirti's research, it might be possible for other goa'uld to recreate her experiments and get it right this time. Think of how much worse it would be, sir, if we were up against goa'uld shapeshifters."

O'Neill sat with his head resting on his hand, a scowl marring his normally handsome face. He pondered what Jackson and Carter had said for a few minutes, then said with finality, "All righty then. Carter, you, Teal'c and SG-9 will move out at 0900 tomorrow morning. You'll go to P5C-898 to pick up Aurora and then head to P3X-846. I'll have our people unblock the stargate address in the dialing computer in case you need to come back home in a hurry, but don't come directly back from there unless it's absolutely necessary. I don't want to take the chance of leading anyone or anything back to Earth if this goes to hell in a handcart.

"I want everyone fully armed and carrying plenty of extra ammunition. And make sure you have enough C-4 to blow up the entire temple if you think it's necessary. If it looks like you're not going to be able to do anything for the people there, at least make sure Niirti's information is gone so no other goa'uld can do this again."

Jackson had held his tongue through the general's instructions even though he was seething inside. "And what about me? They need me on this one, Jack. The locals don't speak English; they speak a very obscure dialect of Latin."

"You're going back to the infirmary, Daniel, until Dr. Brightman clears you for duty. I don't want any personnel on this mission who aren't up to full capacity. It's dangerous enough for the people going without them having to worry about stragglers. As far as translators go, Dr. Benedetto has been studying that language for the past two years. I'll send him with them."

"Dr. Benedetto will be a greater liability to this mission than Daniel Jackson, even performing at less than optimum, would ever be, O'Neill," Teal'c interjected. "Dr. Benedetto is unaccustomed to following orders; he is not in appropriate physical condition for such an arduous mission, and in most of my interactions with him I have found him to be unfocused and easily distracted."

"I agree, sir," Carter chimed in. "Relying on someone so inexperienced to be our main source of communication with the inhabitants of the planet could be hazardous and potentially deadly."

"Besides," Daniel added, the irritation evident in his voice, "Dr. Brightman was going to clear me for duty tomorrow anyway. She's just pissed that I wouldn't wait til then."

O'Neill stared at each of them in turn, then gave a heavy sigh before relenting. "All right, but I want all of you to be very careful down there. These people have proven to be extremely dangerous in the past; don't underestimate them. And I want you back here in two hours for a full briefing with SG-9. Colonel Hamilton and his men need to know everything we know about what they're going to be facing down there."

* * *

After the briefing, O'Neill returned to his office and sat down to stare at the paperwork littering his desk. Restless, he got up and paced back and forth several times before coming to a decision. He picked up the phone on his desk, dialed and said to the secretary who answered, "This is General O'Neill, I need to speak with General Hammond immediately." 


	4. UnityCh4

_**Chapter 4**_

At 0850 the next morning, Carter, Jackson and Teal'c were already in the gateroom fully equipped and ready to move out. Colonel Hamilton and SG-9 filed in a moment later. Carter glanced up to the control room and was surprised to see O'Neill was not there yet. The technicians were moving back and forth like busy ants preparing for the gate's 0900 activation, but there was no sign of their commanding officer.

The doors to the main hallway swished open and Jack O'Neill strode in, wearing full camoflage gear and toting a P90 assault rifle. Tech Sergeant Walter Davis followed after him, nervously doublechecking the contents of the general's pack before handing it to him, then hurried out of the room to resume his place at the main console in the control room.

"Excuse me, sir, but what's going on?" Carter asked.

"I had a long talk with General Hammond last night and he agreed that a situation this sensitive requires a senior officer on site. That would be me," O'Neill said as he checked the settings on the assault rifle and settled the pack over his shoulders.

"Begging your pardon, sir, but who's going to handle things here while you're gone? If we get into trouble, we're going to need someone here backing us up."

"That would be me, Colonel," came a voice over the comm, the touch of Texas that edged it a welcome surprise.

Carter, Daniel and Teal'c turned in surprise to see the familiar sight of Major General George Hammond framed in the control room window. Carter, O'Neill and the members of SG-9 automatically moved to salute.

"As you were, people."

"It's an honor to have you here, sir," Carter said, a genuine smile lighting up her face.

"Indeed, it is a great pleasure to see you again, General Hammond," Teal'c added.

"It's good to see you, General," Daniel interjected.

"It's a pleasure to be back, but it's only temporary. General O'Neill told me what you're up against down on that planet, and I agree that his place is on the field with you this time. But make sure you bring him back in one piece and soon so I can get back to my regular duties."

"Yes, sir," Carter said, her smile fading slightly at the reminder of how serious, and potentially dangerous, this mission was.

"Now don't go throwing any wild parties while we're gone, General," O'Neill said. "I had a full inventory taken last night."

"We'll save the party for your safe return, General," Hammond responded warmly. "Now dial it up, airman."

"Yes, sir," Davis said, pressing the appropriate controls on his panel.

The ring containing the ancient heiroglyphics spun in its track, as Davis counted off, "Chevron 1 encoded, Chevron 2 encoded. Finally, the count ended with, "Chevron 7 locked. Wormhole established, sir."

O'Neill watched the wash of energy jet from the event horizon, then subside and form the familiar 'puddle' that made it look as though they were walking into a pool of water tipped on its side. He felt the familiar rush of adrenaline pump through him at the thought of passing through the event horizon and facing unknown dangers on its other side. "Let's move out, people. Time's a wastin'," he said with an enthusiasm he hadn't felt since he'd taken on the role of leader of the SGC.

"Be careful out there, people," Hammond said sternly.

As the others stepped into the event horizon, O'Neill turned back toward the observation window. "Just keep the lights on for us, sir," he quipped as he stared up at the General, the look on his face conveying the gratitude he couldn't express.

The General nodded at him in acknowledgment of the unspoken thanks. "Good luck, Jack, and Godspeed. Bring our people back safe."

"I intend to, sir," O'Neill said before turning and loping easily up the ramp and into the puddle.

* * *

O'Neill's arrival on the other side of the galaxy was less auspicious as he exited the wormhole in a full tumble and rolled unceremoniously down the steps. Picking himself up off the ground, he quickly surveyed the area around the stargate.

The members of SG-1 and SG-9 were all in the immediate area. Carter, Daniel and Teal'c were deeply engrossed in conversation with Aurora, while Colonel Hamilton and one of his men were examining the MALP for damage and preparing to feed it new instructions. The other two members of SG-9 were at the DHD locating and reviewing the symbols that would be needed to take them on the next leg of their journey.

O'Neill strode over to SG-1 and the alien. When he reached them, Daniel said to the shapeshifter, "Aurora, this is our leader, General O'Neill."

"It is an honor to meet you, General," the woman said, extending her hand.

O'Neill simply stared at the proffered hand and, realizing the reason for his refusal to touch her, Aurora blushed slightly, "I apologize, General. I should have realized that was inappropriate. I only wished to thank you for your generosity in assisting me. I must find a way to help my people and I fear I cannot do it alone."

"Our primary mission is to assess the situation on the planet to determine how serious a threat those people pose to the universe, and more specifically to us. If we determine there is a significant enough threat, steps will be taken to make it as difficult as possible for them to continue the ongoing experiment or to get off the planet. If you are able to come up with a viable plan to help them and we can assist you, we will, but I want it clear from the get go that this is not a purely humanitarian mission."

Aurora saw O'Neill's stern gaze pass over the team and then set in a more determined line as his gaze lingered for a moment on Daniel.

"I understand your anger at the harm that befell Daniel the first time he visited my people," Aurora said calmly. "I do not ask you to forgive those who injured him, only to understand that those you call the goa'uld have enslaved my people and poisoned them, making them into something less than they once were, than what they should be. If you are able to help me fix this situation, you will find us to be extremely grateful friends and formidable allies."

O'Neill's eyebrow raised at that. "You'd be willing to help us fight the goa'uld?"

"The kind of evil that would do what was done to my people cannot be allowed to fester in the universe. It must be wiped out before it destroys all that is good and decent in all of us."

"Hamilton, are you and your men ready?" O'Neill asked, his eyes still studying Aurora speculatively.

"Yes, sir," the Colonel responded.

"Then let's do it."

* * *

Samantha Carter stepped through the stargate and onto the transport station at P3X-846 with trepidation. The intervening two years had done nothing to dull her memory of the last time she'd set foot in this place.

As she swept the gateroom with her P90 then moved to the adjoining room containing the local transport device, she fought to ignore the technicolor memories that flashed like holograms over the silent, empty space arguing with O'Neill at the console, Dr. Benedetto interrupting, Daniel's half dead body huddled like a heap of discarded rags on the floor, his very brief wakening to tell her to disable the console, then the dead silence that had reigned over all present as they'd carried him back to the stargate and home for help, help she had feared wouldn't be in time.

Sensing Teal'c's presence behind her, Carter gave her head a quick shake to clear the memories so she could concentrate on the present, but she still felt off center and her nerve endings were tingling with expectation. She was glad that two members of SG 9 were positioned by the doorway covering their flank, but despite her trepidation, no one and nothing appeared in the room. Finally, she called out, "all clear," and moved to the control console. Pulling open a panel on the bottom of the console, she noted with satisfaction that all of the control crystals were still out of the unit, just as they had left it, and a thin layer of dust filmed the compartment.

"Teal'c, do you remember where the storage compartment is?"

"Yes, Colonel Carter," he responded, continuing to sweep the room suspiciously with both his eyes and his staff weapon.

"Could you go over there and get the crystals for me, please."

"Yes, Colonel Carter," he responded, moving to the wall where the compartment was located, but continuing to eye all four corners of the room suspiciously as he moved. It took him a few moments to remember how to trigger the opening to the panel, then he brought several crystals of varying sizes and shapes over to Carter.

"Okay," she said. I have the diagram we made before we took these out. Let's see if the General's ready to do this. Carter to O'Neill," she said into her walkie talkie.

"O'Neill here."

"The console doesn't appear to have been touched since we left two years ago. I have the crystals and am ready to put them back in on your orders, sir."

O'Neill again pondered the stupidity of this entire mission as he watched Colonel Hamilton and one of his men covering the stargate room with wary expressions, while Daniel and Aurora stood silently by the DHD. O'Neill felt another tug of concern as he noted the troubled look on Jackson's face. The fact that the archaeologist was quiet even though his nose wasn't buried in some ancient writing was a clear sign that something was bothering him.

As O'Neill watched, Aurora put a comforting hand on Daniel's arm and he gave her a half hearted smile in return. O'Neill's frown deepened, his distrust of the alien and her motives becoming more acute the closer they got to reaching their objective. "Daniel, Carter's ready whenever we are. Are you sure you want to go through with this?" O'Neill asked as he crossed the room to stand in front of them.

An apprehensive look passed over Jackson's face, but he responded with forced nonchalance, "we're ready whenever you are."

"Let's go then," O'Neill said, moving toward the doorway to the transport room as he spoke into the walkie talkie, "Go ahead, Carter, we're on our way."

When they entered the room, Daniel saw the familiar sight of Sam Carter sprawled on the floor under the console tinkering with its internal workings. He felt a sudden sense of déjà vu so strong, he found himself automatically looking toward the inscriptions he'd been studying two years before when he'd disappeared, and he had to fight the compulsion to return to that spot. Aurora put a comforting hand on his arm again to steady him, her reassuring presence pulling him back to the present. He smiled at her gratefully and reached out to give her hand a brief squeeze of thanks.

Col. Hamilton sidled over to O'Neill and whispered quietly, "I thought you told us last night that no one is supposed to touch the alien."

O'Neill frowned and responded, "She already touched him before, so it's too late to do anything about it now. Since that means she's able to take Daniel's form now, be on the lookout for anything that looks out of character for him. Tell your men they can shoot if they feel they are in danger, but only one shot with a zat. I don't want you accidentally killing the real Daniel because somebody got nervous."

"Yes, sir," Hamilton said stiffly, obviously offended that the General would think any of his men would do anything so precipitous.

"I need you and one of your men to stay here and defend the transport station, Colonel. If it looks like things are going to hell in a handcart and we're not going to make it out, your orders are to pack this place with enough C4 to blow it to hell, then head back to Earth regardless of whether we've made it back or not. It's our job to make sure that whatever's on that planet isn't able to make its way any further into our galaxy."

"Yes, sir," Hamilton responded.

"Sir," Carter called out, "all the crystals have been replaced. "We're ready to try it out."

"Go for it," O'Neill said with a resigned sigh.

"Aurora, I need your help now," Carter said.

Aurora moved over to the console and carefully studied the top of the panel. Finally, she moved her fingers tentatively over a few controls. As she continued and memories of long ago times in this place filtered through her memory, her fingers moved faster and faster over the controls. Slowly the board began to glow with flickering multicolored lights.

Daniel watched with fascination as the board came alive and then similar lights appeared on the far wall, near the symbols he had been studying on his earlier visit. He vaguely heard Carter say that hadn't happened before and Aurora respond that it was a result of the security override procedure. The winking lights seemed to call to him and, without thinking, he moved toward the far wall to look at them more closely. He was startled when an iron grip closed around his arm and pulled him back roughly.

"What are you doing, Daniel?" O'Neill snapped. "You're walking right into the path of the transport beam."

"I'm sorry, Jack," he responded, shaken by what he'd nearly done, "but there's something . . . . Aurora!" he shouted. "Wait! Can you shut down the automatic signal that's sent to the planet when someone's coming through?"

Aurora looked up at him in surprise, then frowned down at the panel. "I do not believe that is possible, Daniel. It is one of the most important safeguards built into the system. I do not think I can shut it off without a complete reconfiguration of the entire system. And I simply do not have the level of technical expertise required to accomplish such a task."

At O'Neill's questioning gaze, Carter leaned over the intricate control panel and shook her head in the negative. "I barely understand how this thing works to start with, sir. There's no way I can do anything like that in the time we have available. It would take at least two or three months to take the entire thing apart, figure out how it works and put it all back together again. And even then, I couldn't guarantee we'd get it right."

"I will enter the command that identifies us as friends and allows us to pass through the portal in safety," Aurora said. "That should be enough to prevent anyone at the other end from harming us."

"How can you be sure?" Daniel asked tensely. "Larinda knows now that Janus and Niirti weren't gods. How can you be sure she doesn't have guards ready to kill anyone that comes through. Wouldn't they assume that, at this point, anyone who knows the proper codes for safe passage would be connected to the goa'uld?"

Aurora frowned sadly. "I cannot know for sure and neither can you, Daniel. You and your people must make your own choice. There is none for me. I must return to the planet and try to help my people, with or without your help."

Daniel's heart was racing and his head was beginning to throb with tension, but he pushed his dread back. "Then let's go."

"Is there a limit to the number of people who can go down at one time Aurora?" Carter asked.

"It would be safest to send no more than four at a time."

"Okay, then Teal'c, Carter and Jansen, you're with me for the first trip," O'Neill barked as he moved toward the lighted wall. "Keep your weapons at the ready in case of attack. Daniel, Aurora and Baxter will follow."

Carter, Teal'c and Jansen joined O'Neill by the wall of glittering lights. Aurora indicated where they should stand and O'Neill directed them to form a rough circle facing out so they'd be able to cover the most area possible with their weapons when they arrived on the planet.

"Please make sure all of you move out of the transport area as soon as you arrive," Aurora advised, as she adjusted several controls. "If anyone is standing within the perimeter when the second group is sent in, they may be injured."

"Did you all hear that," O'Neill said sharply.

"Yes, sir," came a murmur of voices.

Then the spot where they had been standing was empty.

* * *

O'Neill experienced a sudden sensation of vertigo then found himself standing in what appeared to be an overgrown garden. He immediately began scanning the area around him, his P90 at the ready. He risked a quick glance at the rest of his team and saw they were intently scrutinizing their assigned areas. Confident his area was secure, his eyes moved to take in an overview of the entire place. It was approximately 50' long by 35' wide, and appeared at one time to have been a large and elaborate courtyard, but now it was surrounded on three sides by a decrepit colonnade, most of which had begun to collapse, with the rest overgrown by vines and weeds. The fourth side faced a wall graced by an old, no longer functioning fountain, topped with a statue of the four-headed version of the god Janus. The place they were standing was a 15' x 15' square paved with a faded mosaic tile that had begun to be pushed up in places by the wild grasses. There were still trees and flowers blooming beyond the tiled area, and a long overgrown footpath was barely visible winding its way through them.

"Clear the perimeter for the second team," O'Neill barked, striding quickly off the tiled area to the edge of the garden. He continued to scan the garden and its surrounding buildings from his new position, listening intently for the sounds of approaching voices or any movement in the outlying area.

Less than a minute later Daniel, Aurora and Baxter appeared without warning, prompting a startled exclamation from Jansen, who'd expected some light or sound to mark their arrival.

Daniel looked around the area and frowned. Nothing about it seemed familiar, but then the last time he'd arrived it had been unconscious from being battered almost senseless by the security protocols built into the transport device. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on the sounds of the place instead of the sights, and was rewarded with the familiar sound of birds twittering and calling in the trees. He remembered the feel of the grass under his fingers, then the sound of a soft, comforting voice.

"Daniel!" O'Neill snapped.

_Definitely not that voice_, Daniel thought with resignation as his eyes popped back open and he looked expectantly toward O'Neill. "Yes, Jack?"

O'Neill stared at him assessingly for a moment, the sharp remark at the tip of his tongue held in check by his concern at the lines of strain visible around Jackson's eyes and mouth. "I want Aurora to show you, Carter and Jansen how to operate the transport device from this end in case we need to get out of here in a hurry, while Teal'c, Baxter and I check to see if there's a way out of here that's not blocked. And send this note back up to the transport station to let them know we arrived safely."

Daniel took the note, which read simply, _We're here and okay, stand by_, and looked to Aurora, who moved toward the fountain. Carter and Jansen moved over to join them, as Aurora peered intently at the fountain, the statue and the wall behind them.

"The control panel was over here, but now everything is different," she said with concern. Carefully she ran her hand over the rim of the fountain. The hand stopped suddenly and her skin began to ripple and shimmer. For a moment there was another face superimposed over her own, but then it disappeared and she returned to normal.

With a satisfied smile, Aurora reached up to the statue above the fountain and pressed simultaneously on the noses of the faces of the god pointing to the east and west. With a slight grating sound, the bowl of the fountain retracted into the wall, uncovering a control panel similar to the one on the transport station.

"Clever," Carter said with admiration. I never would have suspected anything was under there."

"Me either," Daniel said with a disgusted laugh. "What was I thinking. It wouldn't have mattered if I found this place. I never would have found the way back without help."

"You're not alone this time, Daniel," Carter said firmly, her blue eyes boring into his, willing him not to give in to the apprehension that had been evident since they started this mission.

A slight smile crossed his lips. "I know, Sam. And believe me, I'm very grateful for that." Still his hand moved unconsciously for a reassuring touch of the Beretta in its holster.

Aurora quickly took them through the sequence of controls that had to be activated to send them back to the transport station. Daniel placed the note in the center of the mosaic, then Carter repeated the sequence Aurora had showed them and was rewarded with the disappearance of the note from the tile. When they were finished, Aurora moved to the opposite side of the fountain and pressed the noses of the north and south faces of the statue. The bowl of the fountain obediently slid out of its hiding place and glided back into place over the control panel.

Carter activated her walkie-talkie, "Carter to O'Neill. We're ready to move out, sir."

"Not this way," came O'Neill's tinny voice from the walkie-talkie, "most of the structure on this side has collapsed. Teal'c, Baxter, have you had any luck?"

"Not this way, sir," Baxter responded. "It's a mess over here, like there was some kind of battle in here a long time ago."

"The entrance through the central colonnade has been cleared of debris, O'Neill," Teal'c reported in his calm, measured tones. "And it appears that someone takes pains to keep it so."

"Central colonnade it is then," O'Neill responded. "Baxter, head back to the courtyard and stay with the others. I'll be there in about two minutes. We'll all head out together from there. Teal'c you stay where you are and keep an eye out for the maintenance crew."

* * *

As they made their way through the central colonnade and into the main hall where Teal'c was waiting for them, Daniel looked closely at what was left of the structure. "This appears to have been some kind of an administrative building as opposed to a residence," he said thoughtfully. "From what I can see none of the rooms leading off this hall would have been small enough to have been used as sleep chambers. They look more like meeting rooms."

"Well, it would make sense that the transport device would be in a public building, not a private residence, wouldn't it," Carter responded, knowing that working on the puzzle would keep Daniel's mind off of other things.

"Long ago, before I was taken," Aurora interjected, "there was a different structure here that was used as a meeting place where representatives of our kind could interact with visitors who came through the transport device to get to know of them before allowing them greater access to the planet and our people. Perhaps this structure served the same purpose. But I do not know what could have happened here to cause such devastation."

"The history Larinda showed me told of infighting between Niirti and Janus before she managed to escape from the planet and strand him here," Daniel said. "The damage probably happened during the final battle when Janus' forces were trying to prevent her escape."

"It seems odd they wouldn't have repaired the place since then," Carter said. "Didn't you say that was hundreds of years ago?"

"Who knows," Daniel shrugged, "maybe they keep it this way as some kind of monument."

"Or maybe they don't want anyone getting too curious and finding the transport station," O'Neill interjected, surprising the others who hadn't realized he'd been listening to the conversation.

"O'Neill," Teal'c's firm voice broke in, "someone is approaching."

"Take cover everyone," O'Neill barked. "Try to find someplace that won't fall down on your head if they have weapons and decide to use them."

Daniel's hand instinctively went to the Beretta and it was out of the holster with the safety off before he even realized he'd reached for it. He scanned the section of the hall nearest them, then pointed to a colonnaded area between two central support columns. "That section should be the sturdiest. They can't risk shooting out those columns without bringing the entire superstructure down and cutting off their own access to the transport device."

"Let's hope they care about having access to the transport device," O'Neill said as he signaled the others to head for the cover of the columned area.

Three P90's, a staff weapon, a zat and a Beretta were aimed at the entrance when the interloper appeared. She was a young woman in her early twenties, with long brown hair cascading over her shoulders. Daniel recognized the white gown and blue robe she wore as the type worn by the order of priestesses. She looked vaguely familiar to him, but he couldn't recall where he'd seen her before.

She looked around in concern as if sensing the presence of others, but was unable to locate them. "Hello?" she said tentatively in her own language. "Is anyone here?" She peered around again, clearly becoming more agitated. "I know someone's there. Please answer me. Our lord Janus sent us a message that you would be arriving. We mean you no harm. My name is Julia. I bring you greetings from the people of this world and wish only to bring you to meet our leaders. As lord Janus' honored guests you are most welcome and will be greatly honored by our people."

The memory struck Daniel with an almost physical force, and he closed his eyes and leaned against the column for support as it flooded him. Sitting in the main chamber of the temple with Larinda, discussing the history of her people. A young woman coming in with a tray of food and drink for them, reminding Larinda of the ceremony she was supposed to attend in an hour. Her surprised look when Larinda said she wouldn't be attending. Larinda had called that woman 'Julia'. Two years had not made that much difference, it was still the same face -- the face of the woman who had brought them food and drink laced with a powerful drug, a drug that had come close to killing him.

He felt a comforting hand on his shoulder and instinctively knew it was Aurora. He could almost hear her saying 'Calm yourself, Daniel. Find your center. All will be well.' Or was it someone else's voice? He only knew it was familiar and comforting. He gave his head a quick shake to clear it. It didn't matter now whose voice it was, it had had the desired effect of shaking him out of the dark memory. Daniel forced himself to focus on Julia, wondering if she had known about the drugs or if she had just been another of Janus' pawns.

Clutching the Beretta at his side, he stepped tentatively from the cover of the column.

"Daniel!" O'Neill hissed at him, but he ignored the general's warning.

He moved silently further into the open until the woman's searching eyes registered his presence. She started to speak in her own language, then her eyes widened in recognition, which quickly turned to fear. She knelt down before him casting her eyes to the ground. "Is it really you, lord Daniel?" she surprised them all by asking in English. "The priestess said lord Janus had taken you with him and would return you to us one day. She will be happy that he has kept that promise so soon."

Daniel felt the anger building in him, but pushed it back. "Will she?" he asked neutrally. "I guess we'll see about that. I see she has taught you my language."

"Yes, my lord. She wanted someone else to be able to communicate with you and your people upon your return in case she was . . . ," the girl hesitated, searching for the right word and finally finished, "unavailable."

Daniel snorted derisively, "Oh, I'm sure Lysandra would have plenty to say to me."

The girl flinched guiltily at the tone of his voice, but dared to raise her eyes and say defiantly, "That one has not been here since you left us. The priestess does not allow it. If you wish it, my lord, I will take you to her now," she added.

"Why don't you take us all," Jack O'Neill's voice came from behind Daniel as he strode toward them, his face set in stone and the P90 aimed directly at Julia's chest.

The girl's eyes grew even more frightened and her hands fluttered with agitation as the rest of their group came out of hiding. Her terrified gaze returned to Daniel, "The priestess said you were sent to save us. Have you decided to destroy us instead?"

"I wish to see the priestess now," Daniel said coldly. "I will discuss such matters only with her."

"Yes, my lord," the girl replied, moving unsteadily toward the entrance, continuing to dart terrified glances at the weapons being pointed in her direction.

* * *

When they exited the building after checking carefully for waiting enemies, Daniel was surprised to see the tiers of the coliseum thrusting into the air not far in the distance. Trying to regain his bearings from his previous visit, he was dismayed when he turned and saw the main entrance to the temple less than 50 feet away. _I was this close to escape the whole time and I ran in the other direction_, he thought numbly. _If only I'd known. If only she'd told me!_ The anger settled like a cold fist in his chest and he no longer wanted to fight it; instead, he was ready to unleash it on the one person who most deserved it.

Julia led them through the main doors of the temple into a massive entrance hall, which was suspiciously deserted.

"Where is everyone?" Daniel asked Julia.

"The priestess sent everyone home when the signal came that Lord Janus was sending visitors to us."

"Where is she?" he asked his grip tightening unconsciously on the gun again.

Julia cast a worried glance at him. "She awaits you in the central chamber."

"Then take us there."

"It's this way," she said. "If you should become disoriented, the lines of color in the floor act as guides, just follow this gold colored line and it will take you to the central chamber."

Another thing it would have been helpful to know on his first visit Daniel thought irritably to himself. He cast a glance over at O'Neill and saw the mischievous look on his face as he looked at the line on the floor.

Daniel winced as he realized what was coming. "Oh, no, Jack. Please don't say it."

O'Neill only flashed him an impish grin and said, "Come on kids. Let's follow the yellow brick road."

Daniel rolled his eyes, "you just had to say it, didn't you."

O'Neill simply shrugged, but was secretly glad to see that the small joke had had the desired effect of relaxing some of the tension so evident in the archaeologist's stance and expression.

* * *

Finally, they were standing in front of the double doors leading into the central chamber. Daniel felt the memories pressing against him again and reached out tentatively to touch the control panel beside the door. The memory of plunging his knife deep into that panel to short out the circuitry to lock Janus and Lysandra inside was so clear, he could almost smell the burning wiring. He felt his stomach lurch uncomfortably as the part of the memory that involved how sick he'd been at the time tried to take hold.

There was a comforting hand on his arm again, but this time it wasn't Aurora. "Daniel, are you sure you're going to be alright?" Carter asked worriedly. "You don't have to do this, you know. We can handle it."

"No," he said forcefully. "I have to do this, Sam. I **have** to."

"Okay, but if we're going to do it, we have to do it now. We're sitting ducks huddled together in the hallway like this."

He nodded and reached for the door control.

"Wait a moment, please, my lord," Julia interrupted, moving in front of him.

"What is it?" Daniel snapped irritably.

"You must not take weapons into the chamber. The priestess does not allow it."

"We don't much care what the priestess allows and doesn't allow," O'Neill snarled. "I've heard how your priestess treats guests and there's no way I'm going in there without a weapon."

"Then you should not go in at all," Julia said. "In fact, none of these should go, my lord. Only you."

"No!" O'Neill and Carter said in unison, then looked at each other in surprise.

"Remember me saying 'over my dead body'," O'Neill said to Daniel.

"Don't worry, Jack. I'm not that stupid. There's no way I'm going in there alone after what happened last time. But it might make sense to leave some people behind to cover us in case we need to make a fast exit."

"Jansen and Baxter, the two of you stay out here and keep this hallway clear. Make sure they don't try to cut us off from the main entrance."

"Yes, sir," the two men responded.

The others turned expectantly toward the door. Julia looked upset, but seeing the determined look on Daniel's face, she thumbed the door control and stepped through with Daniel and the others following behind.

Julia immediately moved to the left side as they entered the room, blocking his view of that side of the room. But Daniel could clearly see who he was looking for -- the woman leaning over the console with her back to them with her long blond hair swept up carelessly in a clip at the back of her neck. He frowned as he realized her stance was awkward, like an elderly person suffering from chronic pain.

"Priestess, lord Janus has kept his promise," Julia said softly. "Come see who our guests are."

The woman turned at the sound of her voice, and Daniel was struck by how haunted her eyes were. When he'd first met her, those eyes had been full of light and hope, there had been some fear and concern too, but mostly hope. Now they were dead, full of a pain and hopelessness no amount of light could reach.

When she saw him, there was a moment of shocked surprise, and a glimmer of that light flickered through her eyes. But when she saw the armed warriors flanking him, weapons at the ready, they went dark again. "Daniel. I did not expect you to return. I am pleased to see you are well."

"No thanks to you," he responded coldly.

She realized that none of the excuses flitting through her mind were worth vocalizing since he was absolutely right. "What is it you want?"

So many answers to that question pressed at him, wanting to be the one to pass through his lips -- why did you do that to me?; how could you have done it?; would you have even cared if I'd died? -- but he knew there was no answer she could give to any of them that would be sufficient or that would make the pain that reached all the way into his soul go away.

"Daniel and his friends were kind enough to escort me home," came the gentle voice of Aurora.

Larinda looked at the woman in confusion. "Home? I'm sorry, I don't recognize you. Are you of this world."

"I was once of this world before the evil one came and stole me away to give as a peace offering to one of her enemies. Daniel and his friends freed me from my prison and brought me home to help you."

Larinda laughed, a sharp, disbelieving sound. "Help us? How do you think you can help us? Unless you are fully human and are willing to be breeding stock, there is nothing you can do for us. My people are dying, some by their own hands, some by the hands of others, and it grows worse every day. The madness has become like a plague, stealing life and hope without warning and without mercy. Nothing I have done has been able to stem the tide, let alone reverse it." She turned back toward the console, her voice full of despair, "It was all for nothing," she said leaning against the console and lowering her head as her eyes closed to hold back the tears brimming in them.

"You do not understand," Aurora said softly, walking over to Larinda and touching her arm.

Larinda let out a startled gasp as the brief contact left a tingling over the skin that had been touched, as though that small patch of skin had recognized the one that had touched it. "Who are you?" she asked fearfully as she turned to Aurora.

Aurora simply smiled, then began to melt. Julia let out a shriek of shocked surprise while Larinda stood staring uncomprehendingly as Aurora's body reformed into that of a sphinx that strutted around the room for a few minutes before melting again and reforming as a python. Her point made, she finally melted back into her human form.

Larinda could only stare at her, the reality of what the woman was forcing its way through the wall of pain and fear that had been her constant companion for the last two years. "You are one of the ancestors, the first ones. We believed they had all been lost."

"Not all. And now I have come back to help you, to help our people. We can find a way together, but I need your help, your knowledge."

"I will do all that I can to assist you," Larinda said, "but . . . ."

The conversation was interrupted by the sound of a small tired voice saying, "'Ama, too 'oud."

Julia's face went white and she moved to block the owner of the voice from their view.

O'Neill grabbed her roughly by the arm and pulled her out of the way, then could only stand and stare, feeling as if the breath had been knocked out of him.

Daniel felt as if all the air had been sucked out of the room and there was nothing left to breathe. He wasn't sure he wanted to even if he could. All of the color drained from his face as he stared at the small boy, who couldn't be more than a year and a half, who was staring sulkily at them through eyes heavy with sleep, eyes that were a clear crystaline blue, the same eyes he saw every morning when he looked in the mirror.

"Oh my god," Carter said, staring at the child, then at Daniel, then at the child again.

Teal'c saw the color drain from Daniel's face and quickly reached out and grabbed him firmly by the arm before he could stagger or fall. "Daniel Jackson," he said firmly, trying to get Daniel to focus on him instead of the child. But Daniel wasn't seeing Teal'c or the child anymore. He was lost in a memory, the memory of a kiss, a kiss that ended with a strange taste left on his lips and tongue, the realization he'd been drugged, then nothing. But then the nothingness dissolved and there was another memory beyond it, the memory of being naked under a light blanket and feeling another body press against his, of soft skin brushing against his own, and kisses - some gentle, others full of desire and passion. And he could remember participating in those kisses, touching that other body, but there had been no control, no thought behind it, just blind desire.

Daniel was like a rag doll in Teal'c's grip, so the jaffa half pulled, half carried him to one of the ornate chairs by the console and sat him in it. Carter came over and leaned over Daniel, gently patting his face to try and pull him back to reality. Slowly, his eyes began to come back into focus and his hands reached up to grab her wrists to stop her.

She stopped patting him but kept her hands cupping his face, saying, "Daniel, talk to me. I'm not letting go til you say something."

He took a deep, gasping breath and nodded his head in acknowledgment of what she'd said, but he remained silent a few more minutes, trying to steady his breathing and calm his racing heart.

Larinda stood frozen at the other side of the console, her face set in grim lines as she watched Daniel's reaction to this unexpected development. She couldn't stop the pain that radiated from her eyes, that was always there, but she did her best to keep it from showing in the rest of her countenance.

"Please don't hurt the child," Julia said desperately. "He's done nothing to you. If you must punish someone, take me."

"Are you out of your mind?" O'Neill yelled, using the hand still gripping her arm to shake her. "What kind of people do you think we are that we'd hurt a little child like that. Jesus Christ, look at his eyes. What the hell have you people done?!"

"The child is Daniel Jackson's, is it not," Teal'c said to Larinda, barely controlling the anger that vibrated through the words.

She stared at him defiantly and responded coldly, "His . . . and mine."

Carter was still kneeling beside Daniel with her hand over his as she watched the exchange between Larinda and Teal'c, so she was taken by surprise when he suddenly stood, his body taut with fury. His blue eyes were stormclouds of rage and he moved jerkily toward Larinda as if he were trying to decide whether or not to strike her.

"'ama, wat's rong," that small frightened voice cut like a knife through the shock and anger permeating the room.

Daniel stopped in his tracks, taking several deep breaths to try and purge the fury. He wanted desperately to hit something, anything to help dissipate the anger that was threatening to take him over the edge, but he didn't want to frighten the child any further. Instead, he glared at Larinda, his eyes challenging her to say something to comfort him.

"It's all right, baby," she said soothingly to the child. "Come here to mama."

The child gave one last frightened glance to each of the adults in the room, then tottered over to his mother, wrapping his small arms around her legs.

"You little scamp, you're going to make me fall," she said with genuine warmth, leaning over to pick up the child and cradle him in her arms. A flicker of light came back into her eyes and some of the tension left her face as she held him close. He laughed with delight and cuddled against her shoulder, his small arms around her neck.

Daniel felt the anger melt away leaving only a dull ache in the pit of his stomach. Anger couldn't live in the face of such sweetness, such innocence.

Larinda looked at him assessingly as she cradled the child against her. Finally, she said, "Do you want to hold him."

"Daniel . . . ," O'Neill said, the caution clear in his voice.

"Yes," he said reaching out for the child.

"Daniel," she said softly to the child. "This is your father, your papa. It's okay to go to him. He would never hurt you."

The boy looked at Daniel shyly, then looked at his mother. She smiled lovingly at him and nodded. The child's face broke into a big smile and he said, "'apa," and held out his arms.

Daniel took the child and cradled him in his arms, feeling a rush of wonder as the small arms slid around his neck and the boy cuddled against his shoulder. He saw Larinda's smile fade like a dying flower as she lowered herself heavily into one of the chairs in front of the console. So many emotions went through him as he stood holding the child, he wasn't sure how to process them all. But one cold certainty settled in his heart as he held that precious, fragile life against him and stared coldly at the woman who had done so many despicable things to create that life. There was no way he was leaving this planet without his son. No matter what the cost.


	5. UnityCh5

_**Chapter 5**_

Carter glanced over from her work at the main console of the ship at the sound of laughter from the other side of the room. The section of the room Julia had initially tried to hide from their view was a makeshift nursery with a large blanket spread across the floor where the boy could play or sleep. At the moment, Daniel was sitting with him, arranging blocks in elaborate towers that the child would then knock over with squeals of delight. Sam had never really thought about Daniel as a parent, but he had slid so naturally into the role it almost seemed as if it had always been that way. She couldn't help smiling as she looked at father and son playing together, but the smile faded as an unwelcome voice interrupted her reverie.

"This file contains all the information on births, deaths and matings. It has been supplemented over the years with information on those individuals who have exhibited signs of the madness. As you can see, those descended from the line of Bacchus are the first to show signs of the madness. As that line intermingles with others over the course of time, more and more people are affected. And it seems that the combination of the lines of Bacchus and Janus cause the most violent episodes of the madness."

Aurora shook her head sadly as she pored over the information and pondered what Larinda had said. "So you had hoped that adding more pure human dna would dilute the contaminated goa'uld dna sufficiently to stop the outbreaks of madness."

Larinda shrugged her shoulders indifferently. "It was the only solution we could come up with. Obviously, from the exponential growth of the problem in the last three generations, allowing the continued intermingling of these bloodlines was only making the situation worse, especially when those already of the combined lines of Bacchus and Janus mated with others of the same lineage. This one here, who was the result of two successive generations of such matings, suddenly two weeks ago, without having displayed any previous signs of trouble, took a knife and butchered his wife and four children before turning the blade on himself. Witnesses who saw him stagger onto the street covered in their blood said that before he died he was screaming about having to kill the strange creatures that were taking over their bodies."

"Genetic memories of the goa'uld coming through," Carter interjected. "Memories of their atrocities in other times on other worlds."

"So the only way to purge this genetic memory is to purge the goa'uld dna completely?" Aurora asked.

"That would certainly be the best way," Carter responded with a disbelieving laugh, "but it would require completely rewriting the dna of every person on this planet. I don't think even Niirti could have pulled that one off."

"Maybe not," Aurora said thoughtfully, "but we may have one advantage she did not. Please explain to me again how this process of rewriting the dna works."

* * *

Several hours later, Daniel sat on the blanket with his back braced against the wall, cradling his sleeping son in his arms. He looked down tenderly at the slumbering figure cuddled against his chest and tentatively brushed a lock of dark blond hair back from the child's face.

Julia came over and kneeled beside him. "I should put him to bed now. He's had quite a bit more excitement today than usual. He should sleep through the night without waking."

"It's okay," Daniel said softly. "I'll hold him." He hadn't let the boy out of his sight since he'd first seen him and he didn't intend to do so now.

"You must be very tired yourself," Julie said gently. "It has been a very difficult day for everyone. You should rest."

Daniel shook his head. "I'm fine."

Julia bit her lip worriedly. "If you were to fall asleep and roll over on him without realizing it . . . ."

Daniel looked assessingly at her, his initial suspicion that she was only trying to get the child away from him shifting to speculation. "You've been the one taking care of him."

"Yes," she said. "When his mother is occupied with her other duties, she leaves him in my care. He is such a sweet child. I have grown very fond of him." Her eyes filled with tears and the look of sadness she cast Daniel was heartbreaking, "You're going to take him away with you, aren't you? That's why you don't want to let go of him. You're afraid we'll try to hide him from you."

"Yes," he answered directly, not bothering to try and lie about it.

She wiped a tear from her eye. "I suppose it is for the best. Larinda fears for his life if he stays here. Some of the others sense that he is different. She is afraid that as the madness seizes more and more of them, their violence will be turned against him. She has fought so long and so hard to protect him."

Daniel's arms tightened protectively around the child. He had a hard time restraining himself from stating the opinion that his mother was one of the people the boy needed the most protection from. But he didn't need to say it, Julia saw it in his face.

"I do not know or understand all that happened when you were here before," she said. "But I can tell you are very angry with Larinda for the things she has done. I cannot tell you that you are right or wrong to be angry. I can only tell you that since Daniel was born, her only thought has been to protect him. Everything she has done since then has been to make this world a better, safer place for him.

"You cannot understand what it is to be of our kind. Harmony is only achieved by allowing each aspect of our personality equal freedom. To attempt to subsume one of the personalities for a long period of time causes intense internal conflict. The other personality struggles constantly to be free. Larinda has held Lysandra at bay for two years now. No one in our history has ever been able to accomplish such a thing without being driven mad."

"Do you want me to feel sorry for her? Is that it?" Daniel asked concentrating his gaze on the sleeping child. "Am I supposed to admire her selflessness? She created this situation by lying to me, manipulating me, using me, then tossing me away like an old rag when she was through with me, and now I'm supposed to be impressed by the fact that she's actually done her duty as a mother and done the right thing for the child she tricked me into making with her. I'm sorry I can't accommodate you."

"I'm not asking you for anything but understanding," Julia said forcefully, "understanding that she **has** suffered for the things she has done and the mistakes she has made. Perhaps you believe she deserves all that has happened to her, but she was only trying desperately to do the right thing for her people, even if it meant doing wrong by you."

"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one," he said bitterly. "I've heard that excuse used so many times to justify unconscionable conduct. The goa'uld even use it to justify the atrocities they commit. Sorry, try to sell it somewhere else. I'm not buying."

"That choice is for you to make," Julia said sadly, "but I must remind you she is still his mother and he loves her, so whatever choices you make about her and this situation will have a lasting affect on him. Do not let your anger at her ever allow you to forget that."

Daniel stared at her for a few moments, then finally nodded his understanding.

Julia touched two fingers to her lips then gently brushed the kiss across the sleeping child's forehead before getting up. "If you change your mind and decide to sleep, I will be here to watch over him. In the meantime, I'll be gathering some data from the computer. I do not know if you have heard the news, but Aurora believes she has found an answer to our problem. She, Larinda and Samantha will be working in the laboratory section most of the night, with O'Neill and Teal'c watching over them, so you should be able to rest here undisturbed.

"Your other two men are still just outside this door. For what it's worth, O'Neill told them to shoot anyone who attempted to remove the child without your consent."

_Good ole Jack, _Daniel thought gratefully_, always one step ahead of me. _He shifted position until he was nestled snugly in a corner and wouldn't be able to fall over if he eventually slept. Adjusting the small blanket wrapped around the child so it completely covered him, Daniel settled the boy more comfortably on his chest and closed his aching eyes to rest them for a few minutes.

When Julia glanced over to check on them a few minutes later, both father and son were fast asleep. After debating for a moment, she decided to let them be and returned to her work.

* * *

A blinding flash of light in front of his face woke Daniel with a start. It took him a moment to remember where he was and what he was doing there. He looked down at the source of the pressure on his chest and couldn't help smiling as he saw little Daniel rubbing his eyes as he yawned and then stretched his little arms and turned expectantly toward the main room with a big smile lighting up his face.

"I'm so sorry, Daniel. I didn't mean to wake you two up. I didn't think the flash would go off with all the light in here already," Sam Carter apologized. "The two of you just looked so cute, I thought you'd like your first father/son picture." She offered him the digital camera as he yawned and stretched his own arms, trying to get some feeling back in them after lying in the same position all night.

Daniel looked at the picture on the small monitor on the back of the camera and couldn't help smiling. Seeing a potential new toy so tantalizing close, the boy popped up in his lap and stared curiously at the picture. He looked from Daniel to the monitor, then back again, his forehead creasing in concentration. He pointed at Daniel and said, "'apa." Then he looked back at the monitor and pointed to Daniel in the picture and said, "'apa?"

"That's right. I'm papa and that's a picture of papa. And who is that with papa in the picture?" Daniel asked pointing at the small boy sleeping on his chest in the picture.

The child looked up at him perplexed.

"Daniel," he said pointing to the boy. Then pointing at the boy on the monitor, he repeated, "Daniel."

The boy's eyes widened and he peered closely at the monitor again. "'anyel?"

"That's right."

"'anyel and 'apa?"

"Yes."

"'ama?"

Daniel's smile faded. "No, I don't have a picture of mama. Maybe we can take one later, okay."

"O'ay."

Just then the double doors to the room swished open and Julia entered carrying a tray. The boy was on his feet and had shot across the room to her before Daniel could even react.

"'uli, com see 'anyel and 'apa," he said excitedly.

She laughed at him and said, "I can see you both just fine from here, honey," but she put down the tray and allowed him to lead her over to where Daniel was still sitting with the camera. She looked at the image in fascination, "what wonders your people possess. Is there a way to take the image from there and put it on paper."

"Sure," Carter responded. "You can put it on photo paper and frame it, or on a mug or a calendar or anything else you want. You can even put the image file on a computer and have it show up on the screen. There are lots of things you can do with it once you have the image in the camera."

"Would you do something for me," she asked, looking at Daniel.

"What is it?" he asked warily.

"Would you take an image of me with Daniel and give it to me on a paper so I can have it when he's gone. And give one to him so he'll remember me."

There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment, before Daniel finally said, "Sure, we can do that." But he handed the camera to Carter to take the picture, while he walked across the room claiming the need to stretch his aching body.

When the picture had been taken, Sam walked over to him, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sure," he said absently, running a hand distractedly through his hair. "It's been a wild couple of days, that's all. And some things are more complicated than I expected." He glanced briefly over to where Julia was attempting to get the excited child to sit and eat his breakfast.

"How's the research coming?" he asked. "Julia said you had some kind of breakthrough yesterday."

"That's an understatement. Aurora came up with an idea that's just crazy enough to work, but only if we can isolate several key genes very quickly."

"Sounds complicated. What's the plan?"

"Aurora thinks the mistake Larinda and her people made is in trying to dilute the goa'uld dna with human dna. She thinks using shapeshifter dna is the more effective method. But," she added, "she doesn't want to simply use it to dilute the goa'uld dna, she actually wants to use it to overwrite the goa'uld portions of the dna."

"Is that possible?" Daniel asked.

"Theoretically? Yes. Practically? I don't know. The key is in isolating the genes containing the goa'uld dna coding."

"Where will the shapeshifter dna come from? Won't we need an awful lot of it to fix everybody? We're talking about thousands of people, right."

Carter was silent for a moment.

"Sam?" Daniel asked suspiciously.

"That's the crazy part," she said hesitantly.

"Oh, there's something crazier than that first part?"

"Aurora wants to dissolve herself into individual particles of dna that will be absorbed into all the inhabitants of this world. She thinks she has just enough mass to produce enough particles for everyone. That dna will be programmed to overwrite the goa'uld coding, and possibly the human coding as well, allowing the shapeshifter dna to become dominant in all the people again. They may never be exactly what they once were, but they'll be a lot closer than they are now."

"You're right, this is a whole lot crazier than that first part," Daniel said clearly flabbergasted by the news. "How soon do you think this can happen?"

"We're shooting for tonight. Since it's the night of the regularly scheduled Janalia, all the people will already be in one place. It'll be a lot harder to find an excuse to get them all in one place again, and there's too much danger of missing someone if we try to do it when they're all dispersed around the city. And we certainly don't want to have to wait around here another month."

"Yeah, I'm all for getting out of here as soon as possible," Daniel said. "I want to get Daniel home and settled right away. I've got a lot of decisions to make as far as what's best for him."

"Like whether or not it's a good idea for him to have a father who's disappearing for days or weeks at a time zipping across the galaxy on top secret missions," she asked.

"Yeah," he said. "That's one of the big ones. You know my parents died when I was only 8 and my grandfather, Nick, was too busy traveling the world searching for crystal skulls and mysterious giant aliens to pay any attention to me. I don't want my son to have to spend his whole time growing up being cared for by strangers."

Sam put a comforting hand on his arm. "You have to do what's best for the both of you now. We all understand that. I know when Pete and I get married, if we decide to have kids, that's going to be a really difficult question for me to face. I've already been thinking about it and I don't know what I'll do. I guess I won't until the time comes. But, I can tell you, seeing you with little Daniel the last two days, if my kids are that cute, I can't imagine ever wanting to leave them."

"I seem to remember hearing something about terrible twos, so I guess we'll find out soon enough if the cuteness lasts."

Sam laughed at that. "I think I remember my brother complaining about that stage with all of his kids. Don't worry, we'll help you get through it."

"Thanks, Sam. I really appreciate it. I don't think any of this has really hit home yet. I mean, I don't know anything at all about kids. I didn't have any brothers and sisters growing up. What do I know about being a father?"

"So you'll just have to do what everyone else does and have a sustained period of on the job training. Besides," she laughed, "there are tons of books on the subject and you're pretty good at research."

He laughed too, and she was glad to see that it was a relaxed laugh. The strain that had been all too evident on his face the last few days seemed to have melted away, replaced by a sense of peace and contentment she didn't remember ever seeing in Daniel before. It was almost as if he'd found something he'd been searching for all of his life and was finally able to settle down and stop looking.

* * *

Jack O'Neill strode into the central room of the temple later that afternoon, his P90 settled under his arm, only to stop dead in his tracks at the sight that met his eyes. Teal'c, who was following directly behind him, also stopped, his raised eyebrow the only sign of his surprise. Daniel Jackson was on all fours on the floor with little Daniel on his back. Jackson was making a whinnying sound and occasionally shaking his body, sending the little boy into a gale of hysterical giggles.

Daniel finally noticed Jack and Teal'c standing there and said, "Oh, hi, Jack. Hi, Teal'c."

"Hi, Daniel. Whatchadoin'?" O'Neill said as casually as he could manage.

"Giving Daniel a horsey ride."

"Oh. Okay."

"What's up with you?"

"Me? Oh, we just got back from sending a message up to the transport station. I had Hamilton move some reinforcements in up there in case we end up having serious trouble tonight."

"Sounds like a good idea. Have the girls made any more progress on the genes."

"They think they're pretty close. Unfortunately, there's no way to test their theory. Once Aurora commits to doing this, she has to dissolve her entire body at once. There's no way for her to do it on one person separately first."

"Then we better hope they get it right or we could have a huge mess on our hands."

* * *

An hour later Aurora arrived at the temple chamber. "Hello, Daniel."

"Aurora," Daniel said with a smile from his seat on the blanket helping little Daniel sort some colored blocks. "It's good to see you. How are things going? Have you made progress?"

"We believe we have found the answer. We can go ahead with our plans tonight at the Janalia."

"That's good," he said, handing the boy a blue block.

"Daniel, there is something I must discuss with you. It is potentially very serious."

Daniel's smile faded, "What is it? What's wrong?"

Julia appeared from behind Aurora. "Why don't you let me sit with him for a few minutes while the two of you talk," she suggested.

Daniel felt a wave of unease go through him as he unfolded himself from the floor and walked to the other side of the room with Aurora. "What is it?" he asked.

"When we do this thing tonight, we must make sure every inhabitant of this planet receives the altered dna."

"Okay," Daniel said, not understanding the implication of the remark.

Aurora looked pointedly at the child playing with Julia.

Daniel's mouth dropped open. "I don't understand. He's fine the way he is. He doesn't need to be changed."

"Many of the others seemed fine before exhibiting the madness. Most showed no signs of trouble whatsoever until they reached their 20s or 30s. We cannot risk allowing even one infected person to carry this plague into the universe. And I am told you intend to take him away with you to your planet. Are you willing to risk the lives of all of those on your world if you are wrong?"

Daniel set his face in a stubborn line. "And from what I've been told, all the trouble is with people who are the product of intermarriage among the progeny of the various goa'uld. Larinda is a direct descendent of Janus, one of the line of priestesses that was purebred from his lineage. Since she doesn't have harsesis in her background, she couldn't have passed it on to the boy. Besides, what is this process going to do to these people? If you turn my son into a full shapeshifter, there's no way I can take him home."

Aurora looked troubled. "Daniel, as good as the recordkeeping has been here, nothing is infallible. It's very possible there could be impure blood in Larinda's background that she's not even aware of. I share your memories of Lysandra and you must admit that she is not the most stable entity in the universe. That poison may very well be in your son. Are you willing to risk that?"

He glared at her, remaining silent.

She sighed heavily. "This may all be moot anyway. There may be an even bigger problem than that."

"Such as?" he asked coldly.

"You are of the Ancients," she said.

"You said that before."

"If he, being from you, is also of the Ancients, there may be nothing I can do for him. As I told you before, their power is much greater than that of my people. I would not be able to overwrite that dna even if I wished to do so. And if the goa'uld portions have bound to the Ancient dna," she shook her head.

"Is there a way to find out?"

"May I touch him as I touched you before?"

Daniel thought about it for a moment. "You won't do anything to harm him or to try to change him in any way?"

"Of course not. I would never do such a thing without your permission."

His arms were crossed in a defensive posture across his chest as he considered the situation. Finally, he said with a frown, "all right," and turned and led her back over to the boy.

He leaned over and said to the child, "Come here, sport," and lifted him into his arms. "I want you to say hello to my friend, Aurora."

The boy looked at her shyly and said, "'rora?"

"That's right. Can you shake hands with Aurora to say hello like I showed you earlier?"

The boy reached out his small hand to Aurora and she took it gently. Her skin rippled softly and, for a moment, Daniel could see the ghostly outline of the child's face over hers. Slowly the ripples disappeared and Aurora's face reappeared.

"It is as I feared," she said softly. "He is of the Ancients as you are. There is nothing I can do for him."

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Aurora," Daniel said, "but I consider that good news. If the Ancient dna is as powerful as you say, it should protect him from any affects of the goa'uld dna."

"I hope for your sake that you are right, Daniel," she said. "I must go now. I do not know if I will see you again, so it is best that we say our goodbyes now."

Feeling a flush of guilt at being so self-absorbed he'd literally forgotten the sacrifice Aurora was making for her people that night, Daniel took her hand and said, "Thank you for everything, Aurora. I mean that sincerely. If you hadn't given me my memory back and helped us get through the security protocols to get down here, I might never have found my son."

"I hope all goes well for both of you, Daniel. I truly do," she said gently squeezing the hand holding hers. "I must go now."

* * *

After Aurora left, Daniel was troubled by the things she'd said. Feeling they'd had more than enough visitors for one day, he fervently hoped the short amount of time he and little Daniel had left on the planet could be spent in peaceful play. But he'd forgotten one very important person. The doors opened a few minutes later and he looked up in annoyance only to meet the steady gaze of the last person he wanted to see.

"Daniel," she said softly.

"Larinda," he replied neutrally, mentally preparing himself for the argument ahead.

"'ama," the little boy jumped up and ran to her, wrapping his arms around her legs and giggling with delight.

She picked him up and cuddled him against her, tears shimmering at the corners of her eyes. "I do not know what will happen after the ceremony tonight, so I wanted to say goodbye to my son now."

Daniel was surprised and a little unsettled that she had no intention of fighting his plan to take the boy. "Just like that?" he asked.

"I only want what's best for him," she said sadly, looking into the angelic face cuddled against her chest as she brushed his forehead with gentle kisses. "And that is being with you. You have more to offer him than I ever will. Even if we are successful tonight, there is no guarantee of what we will become once the transformation is complete. Aurora cannot tell me if we will still be human or if we will be something else. Since he cannot be changed too," she said, looking sadly at the child, "it is best for him to be among his own kind.

"And I cannot take the risk of retaining this form much longer to remain with him. I grow weaker every day as Lysandra grows stronger. If I refuse the transformation to stay with my son, she will eventually break through my defenses. I cannot allow that to happen. There is great evil in her and I will not allow that evil to touch my child. She wants to kill him to get back at me for trapping her inside of us for so long."

"I won't let that happen," Daniel said firmly. "I won't let anyone hurt him, ever."

"I know you won't," she said. "I'm so glad you came back. I had lost all hope that he would ever be safe. I didn't know how much longer I was going to be able to protect him." She hugged the child tightly to her, tears dripping silently from the corners of her eyes. "I never knew it was possible to love anything so completely," she said, looking at him over the child's head. "Do you understand what I mean?"

Daniel felt a lump forming in his throat, but he forced out a husky, "yes."

"I need to go now," she said, her voice shaking with emotion. The boy looked up at her with concern and she smiled down at him through her tears. "I love you, baby. Now go with papa. He'll take good care of you."

"'ama," the little boy said with concern, sensing something was wrong and clinging to her frightenedly.

"It's okay, baby. Go to papa. Everything's going to be fine. I promise."

Daniel reached out unsteady arms to take the boy from her. The child's lower lip was trembling and tears were threatening in his eyes. He turned those big blue eyes to Daniel, looking for reassurance that everything was going to be okay. Daniel leaned his forehead against the boy's small one and just hugged him close as Larinda walked out the door.


	6. UnityCh6

_**Chapter 6**_

It was almost sundown, and the inhabitants of Remana had begun to gather in the huge coliseum in the center of the city. Close to 8,000 people would be stuffed into the arena and its environs, a number that made Jack O'Neill's skin crawl with apprehension. If this plan failed, that would be 8,000 unhappy people looking directly at the visitors on the podium for payback.

Larinda had advised them that word of the arrival of visitors sent by Janus had spread through the city like wildfire. There was no way to avoid having them appear at the Janalia without arousing suspicion. But it had been decided that only O'Neill, Carter and Aurora would actually be on the dais with Larinda. Daniel would stay with his son in the backstage area guarded by Jansen, while Teal'c and Baxter provided cover for those on the stage from the wings.

A hidden stairway under the dais led underground to a passageway that connected with stairways leading from the backstage areas. If things went terribly wrong, the plan was to meet by the stairway closest to the street leading toward the transport station and travel as one group in order to provide the most effective cover.

O'Neill regretted now that he had not gone with his earlier instinct to send Daniel and the boy up to the transport station ahead of them. There had simply been too much to do to prepare for this evening, and Daniel had never expressed an interest in leaving early. By the time the thought had occurred to O'Neill, there was no one available to provide an escort, and he hadn't wanted to send them off alone in the daylight. There were simply too many people around who might see and question a stranger carrying a little boy into a supposedly deserted, crumbling building.

Now, looking at the growing mob filling the stadium, O'Neill could only think what a liability a man carrying a small child was going to be if they had to run for their lives.

Larinda ascended the dais dressed in the flowing white gown and blue robes of her office. Reaching the podium, she raised her hands, palms up, to the sky.

"Welcome home, Lord Janus! Join us in our revelries," came the cry from 8,000 voices.

As the greeting reverberated and finally died, Larinda bellowed in a voice that carried amazingly far for such a small woman, "People of Remana, give thanks to Lord Janus for he has sent us a special gift. His emissaries are here to greet you today and join in our revelries and our celebration of all that Lord Janus has provided for us. Please honor Lord Janus by greeting them as you would greet Lord Janus himself."

A huge, deafening cheer reverberated through the stadium. As the dais shook from the sheer power of that cheer, Carter glanced nervously at O'Neill. His face was set in the calm, neutral expression she had seen him use in the past to unnerve blustering adversaries. She tried to follow his lead and use her best game face, but the noise from the huge crowd was still unsettling.

Aurora stood on Carter's other side, perfectly composed despite the enormity of what she planned to do later that evening. Carter went over the sequence of events in her head again, introduction of guests, invocations and prayers to the god, the distribution of the drugged food and drink and finally the chimes ceremony. Aurora thought the introduction of the altered dna would be most effective while the people were going through the process of change, so that was when she planned to put on her grand show. The rest of the SGC group would make their getaway during the chaos that followed.

Carter nervously checked again that the bag containing the undrugged food and drink they would use during the ceremony was still by her feet. _Thirty minutes and counting_, she thought to herself, _if I can make it that long!_

The tinkling sound of the chimes sent a slow murmur through the crowd that grew exponentially. Screams began to rend the air and several people stood up and started flinging themselves around wildly in the wide aisles by their seats. Carter and O'Neill could only watch in horror as a woman directly across from them seemed to split in two from the waist up.

Aurora stood in dismay, watching some of the people scream in horror and agony, trying to stop the transformation that was overtaking them. "It's time," she shouted to O'Neill and Carter, raising her hands to the sky as her body dissolved into the form of the phoenix. Taking to the air, she allowed her phoenix body to stretch out until it formed a circle over the coliseum, then gently began to dissolve into tiny particles smaller than snowflakes that began to fall on the crowd below.

Carter and O'Neill held their places, trying to determine whether the tiny particles touching the residents of the city were having any effect. Neither of them noticed that Larinda was gone, having slipped down the back stairs from the dais that led directly into the tunnels under the coliseum as soon as the chimes had begun to ring.

* * *

Jansen was covering the hallway outside the room where Daniel waited with his son. Sitting safely inside, holding the drowsing boy in his arms, Daniel was relieved to know the man was out there. The sounds of the cheering crowd had penetrated even this deeply in the complex and he was increasingly nervous about the prospect of any of the owners of those voices making their way into the room before they could make their escape.

Daniel tensed as he heard the chimes begin to sound but was totally unprepared for the flashback that gripped him, dragging him back in time, forcing him to relive those terrible moments when he'd first seen Larinda turn into Lysandra. He tightened his grip on the child in his arms, trying to pull himself out of the memory but only succeeded in jumping forward a few hours on that same night to the memory of struggling through the streets toward the coliseum as people poured out of it, screaming and struggling as they contorted into strange shapes in front of him.

Finally, Daniel was able to regain control of his breathing and he heard the frightened cry of "'apa, 'apa," as the small boy beat on his arms to be released.

"Oh, god," he gasped. "I'm sorry. Was I hurting you?"

The boy struggled from his arms, screaming frantically, "'ama, 'ama."

"What are you saying, Daniel? Mama isn't back here, she's outside."

The little boy shook his head violently and pointed toward a stairway leading down into the bowels of the coliseum. "I sawed her, down dare," he said breaking Daniel's grip and running toward the stairs. Daniel stumbled after him, tripped and fell heavily, landing sprawled on his stomach. He struggled to pull himself upright, but by the time he had regained his feet, the child had disappeared down the stairs. Daniel's heart was racing with fear as he pounded down the stairs after him.

Daniel caught up with the boy just before he reached the huddled mass of his mother's body slumped against a wall of the dank tunnel. Grabbing the child and lifting him into his arms despite the boy's kicks against his chest and wails of "'ama," Daniel approached Larinda carefully, making sure to keep a safe distance between them. "Larinda," he said tentatively.

The woman's head moved slightly at the sound of his voice.

"Larinda. It's Daniel. Answer me. I'm not coming any closer."

Larinda turned her glassy gaze to him and he realized immediately that something was wrong -- one eye was Larinda's green, the other a rich dark chocolate -- Lysandra. "Daniel?" the voice was barely a whisper, but it was Larinda's. "I know it's too late Daniel, but I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. For everything. Really I am. I wish I could go back and change it all. I wish I could fix it so the three of us could be a real family. I'm so sorry."

"Larinda, what are you doing down here? Why aren't you in the coliseum with the others? Was Aurora able to touch you with the altered dna before you came down here?"

Larinda shook her head weakly. "After everything I did, I don't deserve to be saved. I came down here so I would be out of the way. So no one would find me until it was too late."

"What are you talking about? Too late for what?"

Wordlessly she shifted the right side of her body and he saw the gleaming knife laying on the ground underneath her.

"No," he said weakly. "You can't. Why would you do this?"

"What do I have left to live for, Daniel? Everything I've done, everything I tried to do, it all went terribly wrong. I kept thinking it was right, it was what I had to do, but even while I was doing it, I knew it was wrong. How can anything good come from doing evil? Look what I did to you. I won't ever ask you to forgive me for that because I know you never can. And I've lived the last few months in abject terror, wondering when I was going to lose control and murder my own child. I can't go on like this."

"You don't have to. Let Aurora heal you."

She shook her head, "It's too late. Just go! Take Daniel and go. I don't want him to see me like this." Her body convulsed violently and she let out a keening scream. Daniel watched helplessly, clutching the screaming, squirming child as jet black hair started to cascade over her face. Suddenly teeth clamped down on his arm and he let out his own startled cry as his arm jerked violently against the pain, allowing the squirming toddler to slide to the ground and begin running toward his fallen mother.

* * *

"Sir, I think it's working," Carter said excitedly, focusing on one man who had come running out on the field flailing wildly as an extra set of arms had begun to spring from his body. Now he was lying facedown on the field, his entire body twitching.

As they watched, the man's skin began to ripple and glow. Although they could not have seen it, one of the tiny particles of dna had landed on the man and been absorbed into the quickly changing skin. As it made its way through his system, it recognized a particular gene and locked itself on. Activating, it modified that gene and reproduced itself. Slowly at first, and then more rapidly, the process repeated until all the target genes had been replaced.

Slowly the extra limbs began to retract, disappearing into the body. The ripple effect grew stronger until it was like a steady pulse beating around the man. Finally, the effect began to weaken. When it was done, the man got unsteadily to his feet, then sank back down to the ground looking dazedly at the sky. "I'm whole again," he said with wonder. "I'm whole again," he screamed raising his hands joyfully in the air.

O'Neill and Carter stood engrossed by the spectacle, as the scene duplicated itself all over the coliseum. But their happiness at the successful outcome of their plan was shortlived.

"General O'Neill, Colonel Carter!" a frantic voice came over their walkie-talkies. It's Jansen. I was patrolling the corridor outside Dr. Jackson's room, but when I went in to get them ready to move out to the transport station, they were gone."

It was only when O'Neill's head snapped around to ask Larinda what the quickest way would be to get over there, that he realized she wasn't there any more.

"This way, sir," Carter said, heading for the tunnel entrance under the dais, her zat already in her hand and fully activated.

* * *

Teal'c pounded down the hallway, his heart racing, furious at himself for not having insisted he be the one to guard Daniel Jackson and the child. It had never occurred to him that the young lieutenant from SG-9 would be unable to carry out such a simple assignment. He refused to allow himself to consider the possibility that the child had been injured or killed. The knowledge of how he would feel if his own son, Ry'ac, were to be harmed because of the ineptness of his own comrades spurred his feet even faster.

He rounded a corner with his staff weapon at the ready, but was forced to halt in dismay at the sight that met his eyes. A woman was slumped against the wall, her features distorted in the midst of change. Her hair was uneven lengths some of which were blond, the rest jet black. Her right hand gripped a large, ornate sacramental knife, which she was holding against the throat of Daniel Jackson's son. The boy was whimpering in fear as Daniel stood frozen in the middle of the hallway trying to talk soothingly to her, encouraging her to let the boy go.

A brittle laugh filled the hallway. "Do you really think you're doing any good calling me by that name. It only makes me angrier, so perhaps you'd better think about revising your strategy. This blade is coming very close to tasting the whelp's flesh. And right now nothing would make me happier than to get to watch your face as I slit his miserable whiny little throat from ear to ear."

"Stop!" Daniel said helplessly. "Please, don't hurt him. Do whatever you want to me, but leave him alone."

A strangled cry came from the woman as she was wracked by another convulsion. Her grip tightened reflexively on the child, and the knife glanced minutely off the tender skin of his neck, leaving a pinprick of blood in its wake.

"No!" Daniel screamed panicking at the sight of the blood.

O'Neill and Carter rounded the corner behind him at a run, propelled forward by his scream, their weapons raised and ready to fire. "Oh my god," Carter said, helplessly surveying the scene. "What do we do? I'm afraid to shoot. The spasm from the zat blast could force the knife into his throat."

"Put down the knife, Larinda," O'Neill snarled or I'll put a bullet in your head right now.

"For the last time, you stupid piles of human sludge, my name is not Larinda. I am Lysandra, daughter of the mighty god Janus," the woman said imperiously, "and if you do not put your weapons down right now, all of you, I will cut his throat from ear to ear."

"Do it please, Jack. She means it. She'll really do it," Daniel pleaded.

Without further argument, O'Neill dropped his Beretta on the ground in front of him and used his boot to kick it several feet away. Carter followed suit with the zat. At the other end of the corridor, Teal'c tossed away his staff weapon.

The woman laughed maniacally. "Fools. What incredible fools you all are. Manipulating you is like having life size puppets on strings. What else can I get you to do for my amusement?"

"This isn't a game, Lysandra," Daniel said coldly.

"Isn't it?" she said just as coldly, shifting her grip on the boy to pull herself into a full sitting position.

"No." Daniel responded staring her down.

The boy's arm had come free when the woman shifted her grip. Daniel was surprised when the child laid his hand over the woman's arm. He was even more surprised when the skin under the hand began to glow and ripple. "'ama," the little boy said and the glow immediately shot through the woman's body ripping a pain filled scream from her throat as the knife dropped from her hand onto her lap, just beyond the child's reach. Her features reformed into Larinda's and the child sat against her chest, brushing his fingers against her cheek, saying "'ama."

"Yes, baby. It's mama," she forced out. "I'm okay. Now go to papa. Go now. Please. Daniel, come get him, before it's too late."

Daniel had already covered half the distance between them and quickly scooped the boy off of her and pressed him against his chest. But before he could grab the knife, one of her hands reached out and settled around the hilt. It lunged out toward him, glancing off his watch and opening up a jagged tear halfway up his arm.

Meanwhile Carter, O'Neill and Teal'c had lunged for their weapons, but before any of them could aim and fire, the knife changed tragectory. Standing right over her, Daniel could see Larinda's face clearly and watched mesmerized as the one brown eye slowly swirled back to its natural green. He could read the incredible sorrow and regret in those eyes, then, before he could move or react, she plunged the knife into her own chest.

Daniel let out a yelp of shock as blood gurgled out of the wound and Larinda's body went still. He pressed the child against him, trying to protect him from the sight of his mother's broken, bloody body.

Slowly a light began to form at the end of the tunnel behind Teal'c. Daniel stared at it, mesmerized and uncomprehending. _Oma_, he thought, then remembered the familiar voice he thought he'd heard the previous day while waiting for Julia to approach in the old meeting hall. It had been Oma's voice, he was sure of it now.

The glow drifted down the hall toward them trailing tendrils of golden light. Slowly the light began to dim and separated into two distinct entities taking shape before them. Oma de Salla stepped out of the golden light, followed by Sha'uri's harsesis child, Shifu. Oma's smile was warm and comforting, the radiant glow she gave off acting as a natural soother to all around her.

"Oma, what are you doing here?" Daniel asked, unconsciously rocking the child curled up in a frightened ball against his chest. Expecting one of her usual cryptic answers, he was surprised by her straightforward reply.

"I was called to this place by the light of the Ancients," she said looking wonderingly at the child cradled in Daniel's arms. "I could not see from afar who of our kind who possesses that power had chosen to use it. It is a great and mighty gift wielded by only a very few."

"You must be mistaken. Maybe you were called by the light being cast by Aurora healing the shapeshifters. There aren't any Ancients here . . . ," Daniel's voice trailed off as he looked at the child in his arms and remembered Aurora telling him he was of the Ancients, and so was his son. Then he remembered the glow of light that had appeared when the boy had touched Larinda and called her back from the darkness. Shifting the child in his arms he looked in confusion at what looked like a burn mark on his sleeve where the child had bit him earlier in order to get away. Not really wanting to look, Daniel couldn't stop himself from pushing the sleeve up to check out the extent of the damage. Instead of the teeth marks he'd expected to find, the skin was red, sore and burned, as if it had been brushed by fire.

"This cannot be," Oma said moving closer and passing her hand lightly over the back of the now sleeping child. "He is of the Ancients, but he is also of humans, shapeshifters and the goa'uld. This should not be possible."

"What does it mean," Daniel asked.

"He possesses great power," she said brushing her hand reverently over the child's head. "And great knowledge. Like Shifu, he possesses some genetic memory from all of his ancestors. That must be how he learned of the light of the Ancients. But wielding such power wisely is a skill that requires much diligence and training. And it is the type of power that can easily corrupt those who use it unwisely."

"Is there any way we can make him forget how to use it, like you were able to blank my memory when you sent me back to Earth?"

She shook her head sadly, "No. Such a thing is not possible. Your memory could be altered because you were being returned to a fully human state. He is not fully human even now, so our methods would be ineffective."

"Then you must tell me what I need to do to teach him not to use this power," Daniel said.

"Daniel . . . ," she began softly, her voice sorrowful.

"No," he said firmly, as he backed away from her, his voice trembling with emotion, "You're not taking him from me. I won't let you."

"Daniel, you do not understand the seriousness of what has happened here. There has never been anything like this before in the history of our peoples. The power this child possesses could destroy all of us if it is turned in the wrong direction. The child needs constant attention and guidance. It is imperative that he learn self-control and be guided along the proper path."

"I can do that myself, Oma," Daniel said firmly, but with a slight quaver in the words. "I can teach him."

"You cannot do it alone, Daniel," she said sadly. "It is impossible for you to monitor him every instant of the day. It will soon become apparent to those on your planet that he is not fully human. Once they discover what he is, they will try to use him as a weapon. You know this is true. And if the goa'uld ever find out about him, they will want to possess him for the same reason. You do not have the ability to protect him."

O'Neill stepped beside Daniel and said firmly, "He won't be alone. He'll have plenty of help."

"That's right," Carter added stepping up on Daniel's other side. "We'll help him."

"As will I," said Teal'c, walking over to join them.

"You do not understand what you are facing or what you are exposing your world to," Oma said, "or you would not be so precipitous."

Daniel felt the child suddenly jerk to wakefulness in his arms. Sleepily, he looked up into Daniel's eyes and smiled. Daniel smiled back at him tenderly and moved to shift his weight slightly. He'd forgotten the knife wound on his arm so the movement caused him to wince with pain. The child registered the pain and looked down at his father's arm with concern.

"'apa 'urt?" he asked.

"It's okay, it's just a little cut. I'll be fine."

The boy looked at him with concern, then placed his small hand over the still bleeding wound. Light sprang from the hand and Daniel felt a warmth move through the wound on the arm and felt the skin almost seem to ripple. When the light faded out a few seconds later, the wound had disappeared with it.

"Wow," Carter said. "That was pretty amazing."

"Yeah," O'Neill responded. "That's a pretty handy skill to have."

"Indeed," Teal'c added.

Daniel looked at his son with concern, worried that the things Oma had said could be true and knowing in his heart that all the governments of Earth would be very interested in the abilities his son had demonstrated today.

The boy twisted in his grip and said, "'ut me 'own, 'apa."

"Not right now, Daniel. You need to stay with me."

"No! 'own now!" the boy kicked and twisted defiantly, causing Daniel to shift position to be able to keep hold of him. That casual shift put Larinda's body in full view of the boy and he screamed, "'ama!!! 'ama!!!" fighting even more violently to get down.

"Daniel," Oma's calm voice said, "put him down. You must see to understand."

Daniel hesitated, and the boy pressed his hand against the arm he had just healed. Daniel screamed with agony as it felt like molten fire had been poured over the arm. The boy dropped from his arms and he immediately ran over to his mother's body crying, "'ama! 'ama!"

Little Daniel leaned over and began shaking Larinda, but she remained still and unresponsive.

Daniel moved to go to the boy, still cradling his injured arm, but Oma stepped in front of him, "Wait and you will understand."

When there was no response to his shaking, the boy sat crying for a few minutes. Then he put both hands on Larinda's chest and they began to glow with a radiant light. Within minutes the gaping wound in her chest disappeared. Daniel heard a gasping breath and was astounded to see Larinda's eyes open.

"What happened?" she asked groggily.

"'ama," the boy said happily, laying his head on her now fully healed chest as he hugged her.

Carter had pulled out her med kit and was rummaging through it to find some burn cream to put on Daniel's arm. She cast a worried glance at the child and shifted her gaze to O'Neill. His face was unreadable, except for the lines of worry around his eyes and mouth.

"So he can heal people, but he can also hurt them too," O'Neill said to Oma. "Is he able to kill with that power."

"All things are possible," Oma said gravely.

Daniel felt panic settling in his stomach, "We can teach him not to use it to hurt people, Jack. He only did that to me because he was scared for his mother."

"I know that, Daniel," O'Neill said heavily, "but there may be many more situations to come when he'll be scared. He can't going around doing that to people who don't let him have his own way."

"Jack, please. Don't," Daniel pleaded.

Torn between his duty to protect the people of Earth and his longstanding friendship with Daniel, O'Neill wasn't sure what to say or do. The child could obviously be a serious threat, but they were used to containing threats. And he was Daniel's son. How could he possibly ask Daniel to leave him behind. Before his own son's death, if anyone had ever tried to take Charlie from him, he would have died before letting it happen.

Their attention was drawn to Larinda again when she suddenly let out a scream. Black hair began to cascade from her head. Carter, who was closest to mother and son, instinctively reached over and pulled the boy off his mother's chest. He screamed and swiped at her with a glowing hand. She let out her own scream as the hand brushed her wrist and she dropped the boy. Daniel was already there and grabbed him before he could run back to his mother. "Sam, are you all right?" he asked anxiously.

"I'll be fine," Carter said with a wince. "It's just a minor burn. It'll be gone in a few days."

Daniel grabbed the boy by the shoulders and forced him to look into his eyes. "Daniel, you mustn't do that. You mustn't ever touch people and hurt them. It's wrong. Sam was only trying to help you and look what you did to her," he said, indicating the burn on Carter's arm.

"I'm sorry, 'apa," the boy said remorsefully. "I make better?" he asked reaching his hand out toward Carter again.

"No, thanks," she said, pulling the arm away. "I'll be fine."

"Now you are beginning to understand," Oma said calmly.

"Understand what?" Daniel asked.

"Why you must send the boy with Shifu and me," she said. "His power is well beyond your ability to contain."

"You don't know that for sure," Daniel said stubbornly, clutching the boy to him. "You said this has never happened before so how can you know?"

"The truth is in your heart, Daniel," Oma said. "You see it clearly. Do not betray what is in your heart for false pride. You must do what is best for the boy, as his mother tried to do."

"What is best for him is to be with me," Daniel insisted, becoming distraught. "How can you ask this of me, Oma. Haven't I lost enough already. Sha're, Sha're's son, all the people of Abydos, now you want my son too? How do I know you will care for him? How do I know he will be protected? I know that since I was cast down from the ascended, you'll never take me back, and I'll never see him again. How can you expect me to do this?"

"Daniel, you are of the Ancients. You will always be one of us. When the time comes, you will return to us and be with your son, but there is much more that you have to do here on this plane before that time comes. In the meantime, his mother will be there to care for him," Oma said gently and opened her hand. A tiny particle of glowing dust drifted from it and landed on Larinda. It disappeared into her skin and a few minutes later her thrashing stopped. Like the people on the surface who had been transformed, her skin glowed and rippled for a few minutes, then her eyes opened clear and bright.

As she drew herself to her feet, Larinda's skin rippled again and briefly turned liquid before settling back into its natural shape. "I am cured," she said with awe. "I am whole again!" Then she gasped and slid to ground. A silvery light appeared around her and she transformed into an ascended being that immediately went to Oma. Oma smiled and touched the creature of light and it melted back into the form of Larinda and stood beside her.

Shifu stepped up to Daniel and said solemnly, "The path is not always straight. And though we sometimes take different paths, still we will eventually arrive at the same destination. Although some may travel with unfamiliar companions, all will become as one in the end."

The boy's wise eyes bored into Daniel and he knew instinctively he had to let the child go, that it was the right thing to do, and the best thing for him, but still he didn't want to do it. Instead, he clutched the boy tighter to him, afraid if he loosened his grip, the child would disappear forever.

Not knowing how to help, Sam moved closer to Daniel to offer moral support, gently laying a hand on his arm. O'Neill matched the movement on Daniel's other side, while Teal'c placed a comforting hand on Daniel's shoulder. A lone tear slid down Daniel's face as he struggled with the difficult decision, the boy pressed against his chest looking up at him with eyes full of concern.

O'Neill broke the tense silence by saying, "Daniel, it's okay. We're not going to let them take your son away from you. Let's head for the transport station and we can figure everything else out once we get back to the SGC."

Another tear slid down Jackson's face. "No, Jack. She's right. He has to go with them. We won't be able to protect him. If it were just the goa'uld, we might be able to, but once the governments of Earth find out about him, they'll all be after him to try use him as a guinea pig to experiment on or, worse yet, try to make a weapon out of him. I have to do what's best for him, not what's best for me."

"Are you sure," O'Neill asked feeling his own heart constrict at the thought of giving the boy up.

"Yes."

"If it would make it easier for you, Daniel," Oma said in her quiet voice, "I can make it so you forget about the boy's existence."

"No!" Daniel said with conviction, hugging the boy close to him. "I never want to forget this. I never want to forget about my son."

The boy wriggled uncomfortably in his tight embrace and finally Daniel loosened his grip. "'own, 'apa," the boy said.

Wiping another tear from his eye, Daniel said, "you want to get down, sport. Okay." Putting the boy down, he held his small arms for a moment and looked directly into the boy's eyes. "You need to go with Mama and Oma now, Daniel, okay. They're going to take very good care of you. Papa has to go somewhere else for awhile, but I'll see you again sometime soon, okay."

The boy frowned, "'apa come with 'ama and 'anyel."

"No, son. I can't do that, not right now anyway. But I will always be here for you and I will always, always love you. Don't you ever forget that, okay. Now go to your mother."

"luv 'oo too, 'apa," the boy said reaching up to give him a quick hug and a peck on the cheek before turning away.

Daniel watched miserably as the boy raced over to his mother and lifted his arms to her. She picked him up and hugged him, covering his small face with kisses as he giggled in her arms. Looking over at Daniel, she said to him, "I promise to take good care of him, Daniel. I promise."

The boy turned and waved at Daniel and the other members of SG-1, then one by one Oma, Shifu, Larinda and the boy transformed into ascended beings and floated away, leaving the humans behind watching them.

* * *

A week later, Daniel sat under a tree outside the Cheyenne Mountain complex, staring at the sky, grieving for his lost son. He'd finally managed to convince Jack, Sam and Teal'c to leave him alone and return to the planet to work out the peace accord with the shapeshifters. Their hatred of the goa'uld ran deep and they were already proving to be dedicated and formidable allies just as Aurora had promised.

He couldn't help remembering that two years before he had sat under this same tree wishing only to get his memory back, but now he almost wished he had let Oma take it away again because the memories he held inside were almost too painful to bear. He missed little Daniel so much that everything inside of him ached with that loss. _I'm so sorry now that I gave you up. Please come back to me_, he thought miserably.

The air in front of him seemed to shimmer, then two balls of light coalesced in front of him. The light faded, leaving Shifu and Daniel standing in front of him, the older boy carefully holding the younger one's hand. Daniel was so shocked he almost missed the third ball of light that coalesced a short distance away depositing Larinda by a tree several feet away, where she stood in the background watching the boys.

"Hi, 'apa," the younger boy said. "'ou clalled me?"

Daniel smiled and held out his arms for the boy, who came over and hugged him. He showered the small face with kisses and held him close, not wanting to let him go away again. Finally, he said, "I didn't call you, I was just thinking about how much I miss you. But I'm very glad you're here."

The boy caressed the side of Daniel's face and looked directly into his eyes, saying "'ou called me and I come. When 'ou call, I 'ill come. I 'ill ne'er leave 'ou, 'apa."

Daniel's eyes filled with tears and he looked over at Shifu, who only nodded. He hugged his son again, then released him, watching as the youngster went over to take the older boy's hand. The two of them smiled and waved and Daniel returned the smiles and waves, until the silvery light engulfed them again and they drifted away.

**THE END**


End file.
